Pammer
04-04-2008, 05:18 PM
Travel dates: March 8 & 9, 2008
Travel method: Plane and Rental Car
Resort: Ramada Gateway Kissimmee (Off-site)
Accommodations: Standard
Ages Represented in Group: Adult
Disney Resort Experience Represented in Group: Veteran
Comments: A quick weekend trip to WDW while in Florida on business
Cast of characters: Pam, 47: 12th trip to WDW and overall Disney fanatic
Introduction
My husband and I are native Californians and hold Annual Passes with the Disneyland Resort, which we try to visit at least twice per year. We’ve also been fortunate enough to visit Walt Disney World (WDW) several times as well, starting back in the 80’s when we were stationed in Warner Robins, Georgia. It was just a 6-hour drive to Orlando and only the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Sea World were open when we made our first trek down in December 1986. However, our love of all things Disney was born back then and we managed two more visits before moving back to California in May 1989.
Now we usually only visit every 2-3 years, due to the time and expense of each trip. We are very budget-minded, always staying off-site and buying our tickets through Shades of Green (on-property military-leased resort) since hubby is former military, which is another great savings for us.
The Opportunity
I work for a global investment company, who has an office in St. Petersburg, Florida (only about an hour’s drive from WDW!). In early March, I needed to provide some training in that office and therefore decided to take advantage of their proximity to Orlando and make a side trip to WDW! Hubby didn’t want to fly such a long way for such a short visit (what?!), so I elected to go solo and hit my favorites in all four parks over two days.
The Planning
I immediately began looking into flying round-trip into Tampa vs. flying into Tampa and out of Orlando with a one-way car rental. My company would pay for the airfare, hotel in St. Petersburg, and rental car, but the Kissimmee lodging and other incidentals related to the side trip would be out of my pocket. It was about the same price, so I booked the American Airlines flight into Tampa on 3/5 and out of Orlando on 3/10, with the car rental via Avis (since it didn’t have a one-way drop-off charge) and two nights at the Homewood Suites in Clearwater (across the highway from my work).
After some quick research for my weekend lodging, I settled on the Ramada Gateway Kissimmee on Highway 192, just west of I-4. I much prefer staying on the west side of I-4 now, because it’s less congested than the east side. My daily rate was $62.10, using the Entertainment Book discount. I thought it was a very good deal, considering I was staying over a weekend and only booking about 4 weeks in advance!
Advance Dining Reservations would not be a problem for me this trip: I am currently on a liquid diet (OPTIFAST) and all I need is cold water for my shakes! I get five shakes and one nutritional bar per day, plus I can have sugar-free gum and mints. It certainly makes the food planning easy!
With all of the reservations complete, I decided on the following itinerary:
Wednesday, March 5: fly to Tampa, pick-up rental car, drive to St. Petersburg, check-in to the Homewood Suites in Clearwater
Thursday, March 6: work all day (boo)
Friday, March 7: check-out of the Homewood, work all day, drive to Kissimmee, check-in to the Ramada Gateway, buy ticket at Shades of Green, shop at Disney’s Character Premiere Outlet
Saturday, March 8: Magic Kingdom, Epcot
Sunday, March 9: Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot
Monday, March 10: check-out of the Ramada, shop at World of Disney and Disney’s Character Warehouse, fly home to Sacramento
One more thing: the night before I left for Florida, I loaded my Disney Rewards Card with the $35 balance I had previously accumulated…that Disney Visa Rewards Card is great!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Plan: Fly to Tampa, pick-up rental car, drive to St. Petersburg, check-in to the Homewood Suites in Clearwater
Actual: I didn’t get to bed until 11pm the night before, and the alarm went off at 3:10am. Unfortunately, I overslept and didn’t even hear it until 3:40am! I yelled to hubby what time it was and jumped out of bed, rushed around getting ready, and we were out the door around 4:25am for the 30-minute drive to the airport in Sacramento. We said our goodbyes and I headed to the American Airlines ticket counter. I checked my big suitcase in and tried to get exit row seating for my flights but none were available. I then breezed through security and went to buy some cold water for my first shake of the day!
My 6am flight departed and arrived in Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) on-time, and I spent my 3-hour layover having two more shakes and reading trip reports from Sheri Niklewski and Steve Russo (two of my favorite writers!). My flight to Tampa also was on-time (with only a couple gate changes beforehand…I know to check the departure monitor every 15 minutes or so when flying out of DFW!), and I collected my bag and walked over to pick up my rental car from Avis. The nice lady upgraded my intermediate car to an SUV (Saturn Vue) so I could be more comfortable.
I left the airport and headed across the bay to Clearwater, where I stopped at Publix to purchase water (for me) and goodies (for my trainees). I checked-in at the Homewood Suites and got settled before logging in to do some last-minute work for tomorrow. I also called hubby to let him know I had arrived safely, and was in bed around 11pm.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Plan: Work all day (boo)
Actual: I worked all day as planned, and therefore won’t bore you with the details!
Friday, March 7, 2008
Plan: Check-out of the Homewood, work all day, drive to Kissimmee, check-in to the Ramada Gateway, buy ticket at Shades of Green, shop at Disney’s Character Premiere Outlet
Actual: I was up and checked-out of the Homewood around 7am. I then went to work for the second day of my training sessions. Today the forecast was for 80 degrees!
When I finished my last session around 4pm, I went upstairs to talk to the Business Project Manager of the project I was working on. I mentioned how I guessed I should wait until the Friday afternoon commute was over before heading to Orlando, and he checked the local weather and traffic for me. There was a band of severe thunderstorms heading our way and he recommended I hit the road ASAP to avoid them and the horrible traffic that was sure to follow afterwards. That convinced me, so I said good-bye and went back downstairs to log off my laptop and get ready to go. I decided to forego changing out of my work clothes, and was soon crossing the bay back to Tampa around 5pm.
I did have some traffic and had to stop for a bathroom break (darn liquid diet), but I was pulling into the parking lot of the Ramada Gateway Kissimmee around 7pm. There were a few people in line for check-in, so I immediately asked where the restroom was (darn liquid diet)! I got back in line to check-in, and then had to sit with their ‘concierge’ to get their resort spiel before they would give me my keys. The lady asked me if I had my ticket for WDW yet, and when I said that I was going to buy one at Shades of Green later she said that she could beat their price. I was very skeptical about that because I have never found anyone to beat the military price on WDW tickets; however, they did indeed quote me a lower price (but without the ‘No expiration’ option that I would have to add-on at the parks). That’s when I got suspicious…sure enough, this Ramada was also a timeshare resort. But since I was married and traveling solo, I didn’t qualify! It would certainly have been nice had they asked that BEFORE they had wasted my time. Oh well…she then passed me on to the bellhop who helped me unload my luggage and showed me to my room. Although I am perfectly able-bodied, I went along with it and tipped him $3 for his 5 minutes of labor. A nice man, though!
I changed into shorts (it was still around 80 degrees) and called Shades of Green to find out their hours for today and tomorrow. They open at 8am tomorrow, so I decided to skip it for tonight and head on over to the Disney store in the Orlando Premium Outlets. As I got into the car, big fat drops started to fall and escorted me all the way. They’ve just opened a brand-new parking garage back where I always used to park, so that’s where I headed. As I started walking out of the garage, the rain drove me back to the car for my rain jacket!
I found the Disney store and did some damage there (clothing, jewelry, and gifts for $64), before heading back to my car and the Ramada. I called hubby, watched some TV, and then went to bed. Fortunately, the tornado watch they had for our county until 2am never materialized!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Plan: Magic Kingdom, Epcot
Actual: I was up by 7am and left around 8am for Shades of Green (SoG). They were forecasting a high of 67 today and it was 64 at the time, so I decided to wear shorts and my lightweight rain jacket, and put my jeans and the zipped sweatshirt into a locker at the MK for the evening.
I had one day left on my hubby’s ticket (I had used the last day on my ticket back in November when I had the good fortune to tack on a day trip to AK/Epcot adjacent to another business trip the week of Thanksgiving), but would need a new 10-day hopper ticket for Sunday (or also today if the turnstile wouldn’t accept my finger…ooh, that sounds funny). Our previous tickets have the Water Parks & More option, but since we have about 6 of those left apiece, we decided that our next ticket would just be a 10-day park hopper with no expiration.
I got my day pass to SoG, parked in their parking garage, and found my way over to the Attraction Ticket Office to find a line about 5 or 6 deep (darn, I knew I should have gotten moving sooner this morning). There was only one gentleman working, but I was able to get my ticket ($442) and be out the door in about 20 minutes.
I left SoG and drove over to the MK parking lot entrance. I paid my $11 for parking and was in the 2nd section (row 14?). I rode my first ride of the day (the tram) and walked quickly to ride the Monorail (Gold was waiting in the station just for me!) over to the MK. I sat in the middle section to be as close to the exit as possible, and headed for bag check once we arrived. I was through the turnstiles shortly after the 9am opening (using my hubby’s pass with no problem), but I had missed the ceremony at the train station.
I rented a locker to stow my extra stuff [$10 with a $5 refundable deposit, although I used my Disney Rewards Card (DRC) to pay for it] and headed down Main Street, just enjoying the sunny but windy morning as I walked. I went to Space Mountain and picked up a Fastpass (FP) with a return time of 10:15am prior to getting in the Standby queue (just like Sue Holland would do!). I pretty much walked straight in until the split, where the line finally came to a stop. I went to the left side and it was just a few minutes before I was at the front of the line. I asked the CM if I could sit in the front since I thought it had more legroom. He said yes, but added that the 2nd seat had the most legroom and the 1st seat had the least. I was skeptical but I DID have trouble folding my long legs into place!
Although I enjoyed my first ride at WDW, it was pretty jerky and rough for me…I guess I’ll just keep the FP for a souvenir! I think I am spoiled by the nice smooth ride of the Disneyland (DL) version…perhaps this one needs a long refurbishment too? I also had trouble getting out at the end of the ride, but the very nice guest behind me gave me a hand (thank you!). You don’t often find complete strangers going out of their way for you these days.
I walked over to ride Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, and it was also pretty much a walk-on. Now this is a BIG favorite of my hubby’s at DL, but the guns can be removed from their holsters for more flexibility at that park. It’s much more difficult to get a big score here, although I think I may have done better overall without him always turning the car every which way when I’m aiming somewhere specific!
My next stop was the Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor, as it was totally new to me. I only had to wait a few minutes before we were ushered into the theater. They kept showing audience members up on the big screens (like they do at Sea World) and then Roz would pick on different people too. I was glad I was toward the back and by the exit so they wouldn’t pick on me (I was right, they didn’t). The show was a bit silly, but I laughed and enjoyed it. On the way out, a CM stopped me to ask me a few questions about the show. I gave it a nice review because I did enjoy it.
I headed toward Fantasyland and Mickey’s Philharmagic (MP). I encountered a young woman trying to use her auto-timer feature to take a self-portrait to the side of Cinderella Castle, so I offered to take it for her (my good deed for the day!). I then practically walked into the next showing of MP and sat toward the back and the exit. Of course, I still had to step over the inconsiderate clods who stop halfway down the rows and sit down wherever they please! You get pretty much the same view anywhere you sit, goofballs.
After MP, I decided to see the Haunted Mansion, since it had been refurbished the previous year. Again, there was very little wait and it was fun to see that they had added some of the great effects that we already see in DL’s version. On the way out, I stopped to have my photo taken in front of the hearse wagon and put on a PhotoPass (great invention!).
I was now starving as I hadn’t had anything to eat in nearly 4 hours and had left my food in the locker! I walked to the entrance and purchased some cold water from the shop next door to the lockers ($2 with my DRC) and had a shake. An observation: I know that California is more expensive than Florida, but it’s really evident in the price of bottled water…$2 in FL and $2.75 in CA! The lockers are more expensive in CA too ($10 with NO refundable deposit vs. $10 with a $5 refundable deposit for the same size!). Rant off…
I gathered the food stuff I would need while at Epcot and headed out of the MK. A CM directed me over to the Resort Monorail and I practically ran to catch the one in the station before it left! I disembarked at the TTC and found a HUGE line to catch the Monorail over to the MK – WOW! I had never seen such a long line (since I usually avoid Saturdays and holidays), and I was glad I had come earlier in the day. It was now about 11:45am.
I boarded the Epcot Monorail and enjoyed my trip around Future World. It’s always nice to get a birds-eye view of the attractions, crowd-levels, and construction (the Flower & Garden show was set to open in a couple of weeks) and today was no exception.
I disembarked, went through bag check again, and entered the park. As I walked through Future World, I checked out the wait board to see how things were faring for the day. If I had more time, I would have gone to The Land for a Soarin’ FP, but I didn’t know what the return time would be and I was trying to make the next presentation of The American Adventure. So I continued on to the boat launch to Germany.
After a short wait for the boat to arrive, I sat in the back and enjoyed my ‘cruise’. It was still windy, but sunny and nice. I disembarked and began walking quickly over to The American Adventure for the 12:45pm show. I caught the last bit of the Voices of Liberty, which is always a pleasure. My hubby and I were lucky to be chosen ‘First Family’ when we were here in 2006, and this is my favorite attraction in all of Epcot. I could hear the Spirit of America Fife and Drum Corps when I came out and it took me awhile to find them playing in The Liberty Inn. I saw them perform in 2006 and really enjoyed them as well…too bad I missed their arrival this time as that’s part of the fun!
I next headed over towards the France Pavilion, as I planned to see Impressions de France. The drummers were out in Japan, and as I started to pass the boat launch in front of the Morocco Pavilion, I noticed about 6-7 Dream Squad CMs hanging out at the entrance (the boat was at the Future World dock). I decided to stop and watch them for awhile to see what they were up to. When the boat departed the other dock, one of them started saying ‘The boat is coming, the boat is coming!’, and she headed down the exit ramp, followed by a couple more CMs. As one of them passed me, I said hello to him and he told me ‘Why don’t you take a ride with us?’. I said I was on my way to France, and he said I could travel round-trip! I didn’t need any more persuasion, and headed down the ramp to get in line. The other CMs were chatting with the guests already in line, and as the boat started to dock they shouted out their congratulations as everyone in line had just won a Year of a Million Dreams (YoaMD) prize! Whoo-hoo! As it turned out, Epcot was going to be open an extra hour that night after Illuminations (9:30-10:30pm) for about 1800 lucky guests and we all were going to be part of that group! They gave us each an Access Badge and said to meet over by Mission: Space after Illuminations was over, and that there would be a few attractions that would stay open in Future World for only OUR enjoyment.
After collecting my badge, I u-turned and went up the exit ramp in order to continue on to France. The next movie was 20 minutes away, so I walked through the shops and found a quiet bench to call hubby and tell him my good fortune! I was very excited, and I think he was a little jealous (see…you should have come with me!). Anyway, we chatted until it was almost time for Impressions de France to begin (2:30pm), and then I went in to enjoy the movie. I love the music and seeing the pretty countryside, plus it’s nice to sit down and relax at the same time!
I continued my walk around World Showcase and stopped to see ‘O Canada, which only had a few minutes wait. This was recently updated and is now hosted by Martin Short, which makes it even more enjoyable. I’m glad they have retained the title song, as it is simply beautiful. Of course, I saw the usual nincompoops who always either let their children sit or sit on the lean rails themselves, even after the announcement telling you not to. Geesh!
I left World Showcase for today and went to Innoventions West for my Disney Visa Card Meet & Greet photo opportunity. It was about 3:30pm, and there was no line! Both Mickey and Pluto were there to greet me, but this was the least-friendly Mickey I have ever encountered. He ‘kissed’ my hand, but wouldn’t hug me; in the pictures you could see about six inches of room between us (he had put my arm through his, but kept his distance the whole time). It was strange, but Pluto was great as usual, though.
I knew I had at least 30 minutes before my free photo would be ready, so I headed across Future World to Ellen’s Energy Adventure. I had to wait about 10 minutes outside first, but grabbed a bench as soon as I was inside and enjoyed the pre-show. I love Ellen’s sense of humor and was glad to see the entire presentation. It’s also fun to see Jaime Lee Curtis as Ellen’s nemesis ‘Stupid’ Judy!
I forgot to mention…all afternoon I thought about what I should do about the YoaMD prize I had won. I had originally planned to return to the MK and finish my touring, including SpectroMagic and Wishes. I had stuff in a locker, plus my car was in that parking lot. Since the MK was closing at 10pm (which would be after the Epcot extra hour would end at 10:30pm), how would I get back into the MK to retrieve my belongings if I didn’t go beforehand? It takes time to travel back and forth, which would impact the remaining attractions I wanted to see at the MK.
It also seemed like most of the people in Epcot were wearing these badges, and I feared it would be pretty crowded on the few attractions that were open to us. I even thought about switching my plans around and seeing Illuminations tonight and SpectroMagic and Wishes tomorrow night, but it was Extra Magic Hours tomorrow night at the MK and would ultimately be very crowded. I finally decided to just keep my plans as-is, and keep the badge as a souvenir!
I stopped in at the Camera Center to pick up my free photo from the Meet & Greet (a fabulous perk!), and headed out of the park. I boarded the next Monorail to the TTC, and was glad to see the morning queuing crowds were long gone (although it was standing room only on the trains heading over to Epcot)! I disembarked and headed up the ramp to catch the next Monorail to the MK, again sitting towards the center of the train. I went through bag check, entered the park, and headed towards another favorite: the Hall of Presidents! There were a few minutes before the 6pm show, and soon we were seated. This is a very nice patriotic presentation, and is rarely crowded.
I went over to the Country Bear Jamboree (CBJ) and had just missed a presentation, so I walked over to see the wait time for the next Enchanted Tiki Room show. Since it also was several minutes away (and not as good as the original version in DL), I went back to CBJ to wait for the next show. Again there were the goofballs here who have to stop in the middle of the rows and sit down, causing others to step over them and fill in the empty spots and the other side of them. I prefer to sit closer to the exit so I can quickly leave anyway, so it wasn’t too bad for me (just everyone else behind these goofballs). I was sorry to read that they have discontinued the Christmas overlay to this show, because I always enjoyed that as well.
I now had about an hour before SpectroMagic, so I headed over to Tomorrowland to ride two more favorites: Carousel of Progress (CoP) and the Tomorrowland Transit Authority (TTA). I walked right into the next showing of CoP (this is another big favorite of ours), and sang along to ‘There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow’ as we traveled through the decades. It always amuses me that the first three scenes are about 20 years apart, and then they have had to jump forward about 60 years for the last scene! I’m glad they haven’t closed it, because it is one of Walt’s original attractions, and therefore very special to me. Hey, I even share a birthday with Walt (December 5th)…that must be why it’s so special to me!
I then rode the TTA, which really made me miss the old PeopleMover at DL. Not many people onboard, and Tomorrowland looked very pretty all dressed up in lights! It was a bit cool zipping around (I still had my shorts and lightweight jacket on), and it was over much too soon. After a bathroom break (darn liquid diet!), I had time for one more ride before SpectroMagic (8pm) so I hopped back on the TTA! I had another great, but chilly, ride.
I hurried over to the hub and started walking down Main Street. I found a place in front of a store facade and enjoyed the parade…lovely as always. Lots of people were heading towards the exit, and several kept stopping and blocking my view! Fortunately, a CM would usually appear and shoo them along their way.
I decided to empty my locker now so I could make a quick getaway when Wishes was over, so I headed in that direction. I had one last shake and then returned my key so I could collect my $5 deposit (I’m sure that line was only going to get worse after the fireworks). I also bought a Magic Kingdom Event Party Music CD ($27), which included soundtracks from Hallowishes, Boo to You Parade, Princess & Pirates, and Dream Along with Mickey (LOVE it!)
I then stood in front of the train station and enjoyed Wishes at 9pm. Since the park was only open until 10pm, I positioned myself to beat the exiting crowds and headed out right at the end. I went straight to the Monorail, and was able to ride the next train over to the TTC. I hurried over to the trams and was soon on my way to my car and ultimately my motel room (I think I was ‘home’ by 10pm)!
I called hubby and was dead asleep before midnight! Oh, and I walked over 23,000 steps today!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Plan: Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot
Actual: Boy, that alarm keeps going off much too early! I was up around 7:30am and out the door just before 9am. This time I was wearing jeans, as it was only 47 degrees out! The forecast was sunny (no wind), but only around 60, so I knew jeans was the way to go this time. Wouldn’t you know it, the 80 degree weather was due to return a few days after I was to leave! I wore my lightweight rain jacket and kept the zipped sweatshirt in the car, just in case I needed it later.
I took the ‘back way’ from Highway 192 that comes onto Disney property right by the Animal Kingdom (AK), and paid my $11 parking fee (row 27?). There was no tram in the vicinity, so I just walked to the entrance along with everyone else. I was through the turnstiles around 9:15am, and headed toward Africa. My original plan was to be in the park by rope drop and go straight to the safari, but since I was a few minutes behind schedule I decided to go to the 9:30am presentation of The Festival of the Lion King. I walked quickly back there and arrived just in time to be seated in the Giraffe section (where all the late-comers are seated). The ‘traveling band of singers’ arrived shortly thereafter and I enjoyed yet another showing of these very talented entertainers. This is my very favorite show in all of WDW! I love the music, singers, and dancers, but most especially I LOVE the Tumble Monkeys! They are very talented and energetic young men.
I left the theatre and headed over to the Kilimanjaro Safari, debating whether to ride Stand-by or get a FastPass. I was crunched for time since I wanted to see Finding Nemo – The Musical at 11:30am before leaving the park, so I decided to go through the Stand-by queue. Good choice, as it was a TOTAL walk-on at 10:15am! Being a solo rider, I was able to hop on a waiting truck in the front row, and was immediately on my way. However, it seemed like many of the animals were absent, even the Tommy’s (Thompson’s Gazelles)…perhaps from the cold weather? Oh well, I still enjoyed seeing the animals that were out.
When I was done, I had another shake and started walking over to the other end of the park. As I passed Flame Tree Barbeque, my mouth began to water as I could smell the meats cooking! This restaurant is our favorite at AK and we always eat there (I LOVE the pulled pork sandwich), so it was disappointing to miss it!
A line was already forming at 11am for Finding Nemo – The Musical, so I quickly joined it. This was also new to me, and although I enjoyed it and later bought the soundtrack at World of Disney, I think I still prefer the old Tarzan show and it’s high-energy pace (I especially enjoyed Tarzan and his six-pack, although they played the music WAY too loud).
I decided to forego Expedition Everest…it kicked my butt the last time I rode it in November and exhausted me the rest of the day and I didn’t want to chance that feeling again when I still had so much more to do today! So I made my way back through the throngs of people who were just arriving (I felt like a salmon swimming upstream!), and exited the park. A tram was waiting just for me, so I hopped aboard for the trip out to my car and was soon on my way to Disney’s Hollywood Studios (DHS). Funny…I noticed that some signs do still say Disney-MGM Studios two months after the official name change!
I entered the parking lot and flashed my parking stub at the attendant. I was directed to Stage (row 50), and parked my car. There was a tram waiting just for me (and a few hundred other people), so I hopped aboard for my trip to the park entrance. Soon I was through the bag check and the turnstiles to find literally HUNDREDS of dance team members! They were everywhere, many still in costume. This normally wouldn’t bother me except they would scream out their cheers in the middle of a queue or just block the walkways and be pretty much obnoxious (where are their chaperones?). Trust me, no one except your own little group finds you that hilarious! Oh, to be young again…
I went over to the Voyage of the Little Mermaid to see when the next show was, and they were ushering last minute arrivals in for the 1pm show so I rushed in as well. I sat in the corner of the back row, but I didn’t care because I had just made it! This is also another cute presentation, and Ariel always has such a beautiful voice. Her kiss with Prince Eric at the end is such an ‘awww’ moment!
After this show was over, I had a bathroom break (darn liquid diet!) and headed over to see Beauty and the Beast (B&B) at 1:45pm…another very talented cast, and I’m glad this show hasn’t gone the way of the Hunchback of Notre Dame show. B&B always seems crowded, so perhaps they are safe for a little while longer!
I checked the Wait Board for The Great Movie Ride and it was 30 minutes, so I decided to catch the movie at the Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream exhibit. It was over 13 minutes away and I’ve already seen the rest of the exhibit on previous visits, so I headed back out and found a nice sunny bench to call my brother back in California. Today was his 50th birthday, and I wanted to wish him a Happy Birthday even though I couldn’t be with him. I also talked to my 80-year-old mother until the music for Block Party Bash (BPB) started up and it was hard to hear them!
I hung up and checked out the wait for Walt’s movie and it was now another 11 minutes away, so I decided to just head on over to Epcot as it was already 3:15pm. I went through the shops along Hollywood Boulevard, since the sidewalks were lined with people watching BPB. I had seen this several times previously at Disney’s California Adventure, and it looks like it hasn’t changed much…still fun and full of energy! I exited the park and hopped aboard the tram that was waiting just for me; soon I was in my car and driving over to Epcot.
I flashed my parking ticket at the attendant and headed into the parking lot. No one was directing traffic, so I just kept driving up as close as I could to the entrance (dodging guests as I drove along). I stopped just short of the accessible parking and quickly found my spot (row 14?). I gathered my stuff and walked over to bag check. I was soon through the turnstiles, and I headed over to Innoventions West for the Disney Visa Card Meet & Greet.
It was about 4pm (it’s only open 1:30-4:30pm daily), and several people were in line before me. It moved pretty quickly and soon I went around the corner to find Mickey and Minnie…and then here comes Goofy too! Wow…I was thrilled to have a trio of my favorite characters to greet me (especially a tall one – Goofy!). This time Mickey was a little friendlier and hugged me as well as gave me ‘kisses’ (I guess he just had a bad day yesterday!). The photographer snapped a few shots and I was soon on my way.
I hadn’t ridden Spaceship Earth yet, as it had quite a line yesterday. This time it was only a 5-minute wait so I walked right in! I liked the changes, and thought the little video they do to distract you on your descent was funny. I walked into the Siemens exhibit and found a lot of people standing around the center looking up at their faces that kept popping up on the screen. I soon found mine and saw it zip over to Sacramento, as that’s where I live. I also stood in line to send a ‘picture’ postcard to my hubby. It seemed to work until it was sent, and then it said that there was an error and it only sent a generic one. Oh well…anything that’s free!
I went back to the Camera Center to get my free photo and then headed over to Test Track to check out the Single Rider line. It showed a 20-minute wait, and I debated having a bathroom break first (darn liquid diet!), but chose to take my chances with the line. When I went inside, I was surprised the line was as long as it was and began to doubt my decision. However, I was in the pre-show at the 20-minute mark and soon in the front row of my test vehicle. This attraction is such a blast…I love acting scared in the photo! We got up to 65 mph, and then I was on my way to World Showcase.
I went into the Mexico Pavilion and had a ‘private’ cruise on the Gran Fiesta Tour. Great timing, as several people were lining up when I returned. Next I headed on over to Norway to see what the wait time was for Maelstrom. It was a 30-minute wait (no thanks), so I picked up a FP and headed on to China.
It was almost time for a performance by the acrobats, and I debated waiting to see them. However, I was more interested in seeing The American Adventure again (I told you it was my favorite attraction in Epcot!), so I continued on my journey.
As I was passing Italy, I saw the World Showcase Players putting on their version of Romeo & Juliet so I stopped to have a laugh or two; always entertaining. I continued on to the American Pavilion and they were bringing people in through the exit for the 6:45pm showing of The American Adventure. I again had a great time, and soon was heading back to ride Maelstrom with my FP. The wait was down to about 20 minutes now, and absolutely no one was in the FP line…I walked straight in and onto the next boat.
After battling the trolls and avoiding the polar bears, I watched the short movie on Norway. A lot of people will walk on through and not stay the 5 minutes or so to see this. I admit we have done that a couple of times, but I do like to see the movie once in awhile! Afterwards, I exited the pavilion and headed back to Future World.
As I walked up to The Seas Pavilion, I enjoyed the ‘Mine! Mine! Mine!’ calls of the seagulls…always hilarious! I walked right on for a ride on The Seas with Nemo & Friends seacabs. They certainly did a very good job with this new version, and I’m glad to have the seacabs back in service again. I checked out the aquarium and while the manatees had already retired for the evening, the dolphins were swimming around entertaining the few people watching them.
I had about 30-40 minutes before Illuminations at 9pm, so I headed back in that direction. I looked at the Wait Board, and there was only a 5-minute wait at Spaceship Earth, so I decided to take another ride. This time I changed the options for the video during the descent, and the postcard worked fine when I emailed it home.
I headed toward the lagoon and had a nice vantage point to see Illuminations. That fire barge always amazes me, and I just LOVE the music! Fortunately, everything worked this time although it was over all too soon. I tried to stay ahead of the masses and walked straight out to my car. I had thought briefly about trying to catch the 10pm presentation of Fantasmic! over at the Studios, but ultimately decided that I was just too tired and would just settle for Disneyland’s version when I visit there in April.
I was back in my room by 10pm, called my hubby, and then started packing for my trip home tomorrow. Today I walked over 19,000 steps, and was exhausted when I went to bed around midnight!
Monday, March 10, 2008
Plan: Check-out of the Ramada, shop at World of Disney and Disney’s Character Warehouse, fly home to Sacramento
Actual: Today my goal was to be at the Marketplace when they opened at 9:30am, so I got up, loaded the car, and checked-out around 9am ($211). I stopped at the ‘Concierge’ desk to ask them to print off my boarding passes, and then I was on my way to do some shopping. I had pretty much no traffic, and got a terrific parking spot very close to World of Disney (WoD). I first headed over to Mickey’s Mart, which is the $10 and under store. Sometimes they have some great deals here, but this time I only spent about $14 on gifts and other stuff.
I walked back to WoD and did some more damage…about $34 for the Finding Nemo – The Musical CD, Mickey earrings, and other miscellaneous items (after the 10% Disney Visa card discount). I went out to my car and had another shake, before heading to do more shopping!
I drove over to the Disney’s Character Warehouse at the Prime One Outlets, and purchased some clothes and jewelry for about $90…now I was done! I stopped at the nearby Hess station and filled up the SUV ($26), then drove over to the Orlando Airport ($2.25 in tolls). I quickly returned my rental car to Avis and unloaded all of my gear for the trek over to the terminal. I checked-in at the American Airlines ticket counter, and was able to secure exit row seating for both flights (yay – more legroom for me!). I breezed through security and headed to my gate with plenty of time before my 3:25pm flight to DFW.
We departed and arrived on time in Dallas, and I spent my 2 ½ hour layover playing ‘musical gates’, since they kept changing it! There was a problem with the incoming flight being delayed, which was going to delay our outgoing departure two hours, but fortunately they found another plane and we were only ½ late departing for Sacramento. We were a few minutes late arriving that night, but it was a good flight and I was able to doze somewhat.
I collected my bag and called hubby, who was waiting just off the beaten path for my call. He picked me up and we were home around 10pm; I was very tired but pleased with my trip!
Summary
Another fun, but short, trip!
Highlights include:
Winning the Year of a Million Dreams prize, even though I didn’t have time to use it
Hitting all of my favorites at all four of the parks
Staying ahead of the crowds
As always ~ just being at Walt Disney World again!
Lowlights include:
Touring without my hubby (his fault, though)
The cool weather (was hoping for 80 degrees both days!)
Loud obnoxious dance team participants
So many bathroom breaks (darn liquid diet!)
Next up is our annual Spring trip to Disneyland April 9-14…can’t wait!
Travel method: Plane and Rental Car
Resort: Ramada Gateway Kissimmee (Off-site)
Accommodations: Standard
Ages Represented in Group: Adult
Disney Resort Experience Represented in Group: Veteran
Comments: A quick weekend trip to WDW while in Florida on business
Cast of characters: Pam, 47: 12th trip to WDW and overall Disney fanatic
Introduction
My husband and I are native Californians and hold Annual Passes with the Disneyland Resort, which we try to visit at least twice per year. We’ve also been fortunate enough to visit Walt Disney World (WDW) several times as well, starting back in the 80’s when we were stationed in Warner Robins, Georgia. It was just a 6-hour drive to Orlando and only the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Sea World were open when we made our first trek down in December 1986. However, our love of all things Disney was born back then and we managed two more visits before moving back to California in May 1989.
Now we usually only visit every 2-3 years, due to the time and expense of each trip. We are very budget-minded, always staying off-site and buying our tickets through Shades of Green (on-property military-leased resort) since hubby is former military, which is another great savings for us.
The Opportunity
I work for a global investment company, who has an office in St. Petersburg, Florida (only about an hour’s drive from WDW!). In early March, I needed to provide some training in that office and therefore decided to take advantage of their proximity to Orlando and make a side trip to WDW! Hubby didn’t want to fly such a long way for such a short visit (what?!), so I elected to go solo and hit my favorites in all four parks over two days.
The Planning
I immediately began looking into flying round-trip into Tampa vs. flying into Tampa and out of Orlando with a one-way car rental. My company would pay for the airfare, hotel in St. Petersburg, and rental car, but the Kissimmee lodging and other incidentals related to the side trip would be out of my pocket. It was about the same price, so I booked the American Airlines flight into Tampa on 3/5 and out of Orlando on 3/10, with the car rental via Avis (since it didn’t have a one-way drop-off charge) and two nights at the Homewood Suites in Clearwater (across the highway from my work).
After some quick research for my weekend lodging, I settled on the Ramada Gateway Kissimmee on Highway 192, just west of I-4. I much prefer staying on the west side of I-4 now, because it’s less congested than the east side. My daily rate was $62.10, using the Entertainment Book discount. I thought it was a very good deal, considering I was staying over a weekend and only booking about 4 weeks in advance!
Advance Dining Reservations would not be a problem for me this trip: I am currently on a liquid diet (OPTIFAST) and all I need is cold water for my shakes! I get five shakes and one nutritional bar per day, plus I can have sugar-free gum and mints. It certainly makes the food planning easy!
With all of the reservations complete, I decided on the following itinerary:
Wednesday, March 5: fly to Tampa, pick-up rental car, drive to St. Petersburg, check-in to the Homewood Suites in Clearwater
Thursday, March 6: work all day (boo)
Friday, March 7: check-out of the Homewood, work all day, drive to Kissimmee, check-in to the Ramada Gateway, buy ticket at Shades of Green, shop at Disney’s Character Premiere Outlet
Saturday, March 8: Magic Kingdom, Epcot
Sunday, March 9: Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot
Monday, March 10: check-out of the Ramada, shop at World of Disney and Disney’s Character Warehouse, fly home to Sacramento
One more thing: the night before I left for Florida, I loaded my Disney Rewards Card with the $35 balance I had previously accumulated…that Disney Visa Rewards Card is great!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Plan: Fly to Tampa, pick-up rental car, drive to St. Petersburg, check-in to the Homewood Suites in Clearwater
Actual: I didn’t get to bed until 11pm the night before, and the alarm went off at 3:10am. Unfortunately, I overslept and didn’t even hear it until 3:40am! I yelled to hubby what time it was and jumped out of bed, rushed around getting ready, and we were out the door around 4:25am for the 30-minute drive to the airport in Sacramento. We said our goodbyes and I headed to the American Airlines ticket counter. I checked my big suitcase in and tried to get exit row seating for my flights but none were available. I then breezed through security and went to buy some cold water for my first shake of the day!
My 6am flight departed and arrived in Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) on-time, and I spent my 3-hour layover having two more shakes and reading trip reports from Sheri Niklewski and Steve Russo (two of my favorite writers!). My flight to Tampa also was on-time (with only a couple gate changes beforehand…I know to check the departure monitor every 15 minutes or so when flying out of DFW!), and I collected my bag and walked over to pick up my rental car from Avis. The nice lady upgraded my intermediate car to an SUV (Saturn Vue) so I could be more comfortable.
I left the airport and headed across the bay to Clearwater, where I stopped at Publix to purchase water (for me) and goodies (for my trainees). I checked-in at the Homewood Suites and got settled before logging in to do some last-minute work for tomorrow. I also called hubby to let him know I had arrived safely, and was in bed around 11pm.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Plan: Work all day (boo)
Actual: I worked all day as planned, and therefore won’t bore you with the details!
Friday, March 7, 2008
Plan: Check-out of the Homewood, work all day, drive to Kissimmee, check-in to the Ramada Gateway, buy ticket at Shades of Green, shop at Disney’s Character Premiere Outlet
Actual: I was up and checked-out of the Homewood around 7am. I then went to work for the second day of my training sessions. Today the forecast was for 80 degrees!
When I finished my last session around 4pm, I went upstairs to talk to the Business Project Manager of the project I was working on. I mentioned how I guessed I should wait until the Friday afternoon commute was over before heading to Orlando, and he checked the local weather and traffic for me. There was a band of severe thunderstorms heading our way and he recommended I hit the road ASAP to avoid them and the horrible traffic that was sure to follow afterwards. That convinced me, so I said good-bye and went back downstairs to log off my laptop and get ready to go. I decided to forego changing out of my work clothes, and was soon crossing the bay back to Tampa around 5pm.
I did have some traffic and had to stop for a bathroom break (darn liquid diet), but I was pulling into the parking lot of the Ramada Gateway Kissimmee around 7pm. There were a few people in line for check-in, so I immediately asked where the restroom was (darn liquid diet)! I got back in line to check-in, and then had to sit with their ‘concierge’ to get their resort spiel before they would give me my keys. The lady asked me if I had my ticket for WDW yet, and when I said that I was going to buy one at Shades of Green later she said that she could beat their price. I was very skeptical about that because I have never found anyone to beat the military price on WDW tickets; however, they did indeed quote me a lower price (but without the ‘No expiration’ option that I would have to add-on at the parks). That’s when I got suspicious…sure enough, this Ramada was also a timeshare resort. But since I was married and traveling solo, I didn’t qualify! It would certainly have been nice had they asked that BEFORE they had wasted my time. Oh well…she then passed me on to the bellhop who helped me unload my luggage and showed me to my room. Although I am perfectly able-bodied, I went along with it and tipped him $3 for his 5 minutes of labor. A nice man, though!
I changed into shorts (it was still around 80 degrees) and called Shades of Green to find out their hours for today and tomorrow. They open at 8am tomorrow, so I decided to skip it for tonight and head on over to the Disney store in the Orlando Premium Outlets. As I got into the car, big fat drops started to fall and escorted me all the way. They’ve just opened a brand-new parking garage back where I always used to park, so that’s where I headed. As I started walking out of the garage, the rain drove me back to the car for my rain jacket!
I found the Disney store and did some damage there (clothing, jewelry, and gifts for $64), before heading back to my car and the Ramada. I called hubby, watched some TV, and then went to bed. Fortunately, the tornado watch they had for our county until 2am never materialized!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Plan: Magic Kingdom, Epcot
Actual: I was up by 7am and left around 8am for Shades of Green (SoG). They were forecasting a high of 67 today and it was 64 at the time, so I decided to wear shorts and my lightweight rain jacket, and put my jeans and the zipped sweatshirt into a locker at the MK for the evening.
I had one day left on my hubby’s ticket (I had used the last day on my ticket back in November when I had the good fortune to tack on a day trip to AK/Epcot adjacent to another business trip the week of Thanksgiving), but would need a new 10-day hopper ticket for Sunday (or also today if the turnstile wouldn’t accept my finger…ooh, that sounds funny). Our previous tickets have the Water Parks & More option, but since we have about 6 of those left apiece, we decided that our next ticket would just be a 10-day park hopper with no expiration.
I got my day pass to SoG, parked in their parking garage, and found my way over to the Attraction Ticket Office to find a line about 5 or 6 deep (darn, I knew I should have gotten moving sooner this morning). There was only one gentleman working, but I was able to get my ticket ($442) and be out the door in about 20 minutes.
I left SoG and drove over to the MK parking lot entrance. I paid my $11 for parking and was in the 2nd section (row 14?). I rode my first ride of the day (the tram) and walked quickly to ride the Monorail (Gold was waiting in the station just for me!) over to the MK. I sat in the middle section to be as close to the exit as possible, and headed for bag check once we arrived. I was through the turnstiles shortly after the 9am opening (using my hubby’s pass with no problem), but I had missed the ceremony at the train station.
I rented a locker to stow my extra stuff [$10 with a $5 refundable deposit, although I used my Disney Rewards Card (DRC) to pay for it] and headed down Main Street, just enjoying the sunny but windy morning as I walked. I went to Space Mountain and picked up a Fastpass (FP) with a return time of 10:15am prior to getting in the Standby queue (just like Sue Holland would do!). I pretty much walked straight in until the split, where the line finally came to a stop. I went to the left side and it was just a few minutes before I was at the front of the line. I asked the CM if I could sit in the front since I thought it had more legroom. He said yes, but added that the 2nd seat had the most legroom and the 1st seat had the least. I was skeptical but I DID have trouble folding my long legs into place!
Although I enjoyed my first ride at WDW, it was pretty jerky and rough for me…I guess I’ll just keep the FP for a souvenir! I think I am spoiled by the nice smooth ride of the Disneyland (DL) version…perhaps this one needs a long refurbishment too? I also had trouble getting out at the end of the ride, but the very nice guest behind me gave me a hand (thank you!). You don’t often find complete strangers going out of their way for you these days.
I walked over to ride Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, and it was also pretty much a walk-on. Now this is a BIG favorite of my hubby’s at DL, but the guns can be removed from their holsters for more flexibility at that park. It’s much more difficult to get a big score here, although I think I may have done better overall without him always turning the car every which way when I’m aiming somewhere specific!
My next stop was the Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor, as it was totally new to me. I only had to wait a few minutes before we were ushered into the theater. They kept showing audience members up on the big screens (like they do at Sea World) and then Roz would pick on different people too. I was glad I was toward the back and by the exit so they wouldn’t pick on me (I was right, they didn’t). The show was a bit silly, but I laughed and enjoyed it. On the way out, a CM stopped me to ask me a few questions about the show. I gave it a nice review because I did enjoy it.
I headed toward Fantasyland and Mickey’s Philharmagic (MP). I encountered a young woman trying to use her auto-timer feature to take a self-portrait to the side of Cinderella Castle, so I offered to take it for her (my good deed for the day!). I then practically walked into the next showing of MP and sat toward the back and the exit. Of course, I still had to step over the inconsiderate clods who stop halfway down the rows and sit down wherever they please! You get pretty much the same view anywhere you sit, goofballs.
After MP, I decided to see the Haunted Mansion, since it had been refurbished the previous year. Again, there was very little wait and it was fun to see that they had added some of the great effects that we already see in DL’s version. On the way out, I stopped to have my photo taken in front of the hearse wagon and put on a PhotoPass (great invention!).
I was now starving as I hadn’t had anything to eat in nearly 4 hours and had left my food in the locker! I walked to the entrance and purchased some cold water from the shop next door to the lockers ($2 with my DRC) and had a shake. An observation: I know that California is more expensive than Florida, but it’s really evident in the price of bottled water…$2 in FL and $2.75 in CA! The lockers are more expensive in CA too ($10 with NO refundable deposit vs. $10 with a $5 refundable deposit for the same size!). Rant off…
I gathered the food stuff I would need while at Epcot and headed out of the MK. A CM directed me over to the Resort Monorail and I practically ran to catch the one in the station before it left! I disembarked at the TTC and found a HUGE line to catch the Monorail over to the MK – WOW! I had never seen such a long line (since I usually avoid Saturdays and holidays), and I was glad I had come earlier in the day. It was now about 11:45am.
I boarded the Epcot Monorail and enjoyed my trip around Future World. It’s always nice to get a birds-eye view of the attractions, crowd-levels, and construction (the Flower & Garden show was set to open in a couple of weeks) and today was no exception.
I disembarked, went through bag check again, and entered the park. As I walked through Future World, I checked out the wait board to see how things were faring for the day. If I had more time, I would have gone to The Land for a Soarin’ FP, but I didn’t know what the return time would be and I was trying to make the next presentation of The American Adventure. So I continued on to the boat launch to Germany.
After a short wait for the boat to arrive, I sat in the back and enjoyed my ‘cruise’. It was still windy, but sunny and nice. I disembarked and began walking quickly over to The American Adventure for the 12:45pm show. I caught the last bit of the Voices of Liberty, which is always a pleasure. My hubby and I were lucky to be chosen ‘First Family’ when we were here in 2006, and this is my favorite attraction in all of Epcot. I could hear the Spirit of America Fife and Drum Corps when I came out and it took me awhile to find them playing in The Liberty Inn. I saw them perform in 2006 and really enjoyed them as well…too bad I missed their arrival this time as that’s part of the fun!
I next headed over towards the France Pavilion, as I planned to see Impressions de France. The drummers were out in Japan, and as I started to pass the boat launch in front of the Morocco Pavilion, I noticed about 6-7 Dream Squad CMs hanging out at the entrance (the boat was at the Future World dock). I decided to stop and watch them for awhile to see what they were up to. When the boat departed the other dock, one of them started saying ‘The boat is coming, the boat is coming!’, and she headed down the exit ramp, followed by a couple more CMs. As one of them passed me, I said hello to him and he told me ‘Why don’t you take a ride with us?’. I said I was on my way to France, and he said I could travel round-trip! I didn’t need any more persuasion, and headed down the ramp to get in line. The other CMs were chatting with the guests already in line, and as the boat started to dock they shouted out their congratulations as everyone in line had just won a Year of a Million Dreams (YoaMD) prize! Whoo-hoo! As it turned out, Epcot was going to be open an extra hour that night after Illuminations (9:30-10:30pm) for about 1800 lucky guests and we all were going to be part of that group! They gave us each an Access Badge and said to meet over by Mission: Space after Illuminations was over, and that there would be a few attractions that would stay open in Future World for only OUR enjoyment.
After collecting my badge, I u-turned and went up the exit ramp in order to continue on to France. The next movie was 20 minutes away, so I walked through the shops and found a quiet bench to call hubby and tell him my good fortune! I was very excited, and I think he was a little jealous (see…you should have come with me!). Anyway, we chatted until it was almost time for Impressions de France to begin (2:30pm), and then I went in to enjoy the movie. I love the music and seeing the pretty countryside, plus it’s nice to sit down and relax at the same time!
I continued my walk around World Showcase and stopped to see ‘O Canada, which only had a few minutes wait. This was recently updated and is now hosted by Martin Short, which makes it even more enjoyable. I’m glad they have retained the title song, as it is simply beautiful. Of course, I saw the usual nincompoops who always either let their children sit or sit on the lean rails themselves, even after the announcement telling you not to. Geesh!
I left World Showcase for today and went to Innoventions West for my Disney Visa Card Meet & Greet photo opportunity. It was about 3:30pm, and there was no line! Both Mickey and Pluto were there to greet me, but this was the least-friendly Mickey I have ever encountered. He ‘kissed’ my hand, but wouldn’t hug me; in the pictures you could see about six inches of room between us (he had put my arm through his, but kept his distance the whole time). It was strange, but Pluto was great as usual, though.
I knew I had at least 30 minutes before my free photo would be ready, so I headed across Future World to Ellen’s Energy Adventure. I had to wait about 10 minutes outside first, but grabbed a bench as soon as I was inside and enjoyed the pre-show. I love Ellen’s sense of humor and was glad to see the entire presentation. It’s also fun to see Jaime Lee Curtis as Ellen’s nemesis ‘Stupid’ Judy!
I forgot to mention…all afternoon I thought about what I should do about the YoaMD prize I had won. I had originally planned to return to the MK and finish my touring, including SpectroMagic and Wishes. I had stuff in a locker, plus my car was in that parking lot. Since the MK was closing at 10pm (which would be after the Epcot extra hour would end at 10:30pm), how would I get back into the MK to retrieve my belongings if I didn’t go beforehand? It takes time to travel back and forth, which would impact the remaining attractions I wanted to see at the MK.
It also seemed like most of the people in Epcot were wearing these badges, and I feared it would be pretty crowded on the few attractions that were open to us. I even thought about switching my plans around and seeing Illuminations tonight and SpectroMagic and Wishes tomorrow night, but it was Extra Magic Hours tomorrow night at the MK and would ultimately be very crowded. I finally decided to just keep my plans as-is, and keep the badge as a souvenir!
I stopped in at the Camera Center to pick up my free photo from the Meet & Greet (a fabulous perk!), and headed out of the park. I boarded the next Monorail to the TTC, and was glad to see the morning queuing crowds were long gone (although it was standing room only on the trains heading over to Epcot)! I disembarked and headed up the ramp to catch the next Monorail to the MK, again sitting towards the center of the train. I went through bag check, entered the park, and headed towards another favorite: the Hall of Presidents! There were a few minutes before the 6pm show, and soon we were seated. This is a very nice patriotic presentation, and is rarely crowded.
I went over to the Country Bear Jamboree (CBJ) and had just missed a presentation, so I walked over to see the wait time for the next Enchanted Tiki Room show. Since it also was several minutes away (and not as good as the original version in DL), I went back to CBJ to wait for the next show. Again there were the goofballs here who have to stop in the middle of the rows and sit down, causing others to step over them and fill in the empty spots and the other side of them. I prefer to sit closer to the exit so I can quickly leave anyway, so it wasn’t too bad for me (just everyone else behind these goofballs). I was sorry to read that they have discontinued the Christmas overlay to this show, because I always enjoyed that as well.
I now had about an hour before SpectroMagic, so I headed over to Tomorrowland to ride two more favorites: Carousel of Progress (CoP) and the Tomorrowland Transit Authority (TTA). I walked right into the next showing of CoP (this is another big favorite of ours), and sang along to ‘There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow’ as we traveled through the decades. It always amuses me that the first three scenes are about 20 years apart, and then they have had to jump forward about 60 years for the last scene! I’m glad they haven’t closed it, because it is one of Walt’s original attractions, and therefore very special to me. Hey, I even share a birthday with Walt (December 5th)…that must be why it’s so special to me!
I then rode the TTA, which really made me miss the old PeopleMover at DL. Not many people onboard, and Tomorrowland looked very pretty all dressed up in lights! It was a bit cool zipping around (I still had my shorts and lightweight jacket on), and it was over much too soon. After a bathroom break (darn liquid diet!), I had time for one more ride before SpectroMagic (8pm) so I hopped back on the TTA! I had another great, but chilly, ride.
I hurried over to the hub and started walking down Main Street. I found a place in front of a store facade and enjoyed the parade…lovely as always. Lots of people were heading towards the exit, and several kept stopping and blocking my view! Fortunately, a CM would usually appear and shoo them along their way.
I decided to empty my locker now so I could make a quick getaway when Wishes was over, so I headed in that direction. I had one last shake and then returned my key so I could collect my $5 deposit (I’m sure that line was only going to get worse after the fireworks). I also bought a Magic Kingdom Event Party Music CD ($27), which included soundtracks from Hallowishes, Boo to You Parade, Princess & Pirates, and Dream Along with Mickey (LOVE it!)
I then stood in front of the train station and enjoyed Wishes at 9pm. Since the park was only open until 10pm, I positioned myself to beat the exiting crowds and headed out right at the end. I went straight to the Monorail, and was able to ride the next train over to the TTC. I hurried over to the trams and was soon on my way to my car and ultimately my motel room (I think I was ‘home’ by 10pm)!
I called hubby and was dead asleep before midnight! Oh, and I walked over 23,000 steps today!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Plan: Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot
Actual: Boy, that alarm keeps going off much too early! I was up around 7:30am and out the door just before 9am. This time I was wearing jeans, as it was only 47 degrees out! The forecast was sunny (no wind), but only around 60, so I knew jeans was the way to go this time. Wouldn’t you know it, the 80 degree weather was due to return a few days after I was to leave! I wore my lightweight rain jacket and kept the zipped sweatshirt in the car, just in case I needed it later.
I took the ‘back way’ from Highway 192 that comes onto Disney property right by the Animal Kingdom (AK), and paid my $11 parking fee (row 27?). There was no tram in the vicinity, so I just walked to the entrance along with everyone else. I was through the turnstiles around 9:15am, and headed toward Africa. My original plan was to be in the park by rope drop and go straight to the safari, but since I was a few minutes behind schedule I decided to go to the 9:30am presentation of The Festival of the Lion King. I walked quickly back there and arrived just in time to be seated in the Giraffe section (where all the late-comers are seated). The ‘traveling band of singers’ arrived shortly thereafter and I enjoyed yet another showing of these very talented entertainers. This is my very favorite show in all of WDW! I love the music, singers, and dancers, but most especially I LOVE the Tumble Monkeys! They are very talented and energetic young men.
I left the theatre and headed over to the Kilimanjaro Safari, debating whether to ride Stand-by or get a FastPass. I was crunched for time since I wanted to see Finding Nemo – The Musical at 11:30am before leaving the park, so I decided to go through the Stand-by queue. Good choice, as it was a TOTAL walk-on at 10:15am! Being a solo rider, I was able to hop on a waiting truck in the front row, and was immediately on my way. However, it seemed like many of the animals were absent, even the Tommy’s (Thompson’s Gazelles)…perhaps from the cold weather? Oh well, I still enjoyed seeing the animals that were out.
When I was done, I had another shake and started walking over to the other end of the park. As I passed Flame Tree Barbeque, my mouth began to water as I could smell the meats cooking! This restaurant is our favorite at AK and we always eat there (I LOVE the pulled pork sandwich), so it was disappointing to miss it!
A line was already forming at 11am for Finding Nemo – The Musical, so I quickly joined it. This was also new to me, and although I enjoyed it and later bought the soundtrack at World of Disney, I think I still prefer the old Tarzan show and it’s high-energy pace (I especially enjoyed Tarzan and his six-pack, although they played the music WAY too loud).
I decided to forego Expedition Everest…it kicked my butt the last time I rode it in November and exhausted me the rest of the day and I didn’t want to chance that feeling again when I still had so much more to do today! So I made my way back through the throngs of people who were just arriving (I felt like a salmon swimming upstream!), and exited the park. A tram was waiting just for me, so I hopped aboard for the trip out to my car and was soon on my way to Disney’s Hollywood Studios (DHS). Funny…I noticed that some signs do still say Disney-MGM Studios two months after the official name change!
I entered the parking lot and flashed my parking stub at the attendant. I was directed to Stage (row 50), and parked my car. There was a tram waiting just for me (and a few hundred other people), so I hopped aboard for my trip to the park entrance. Soon I was through the bag check and the turnstiles to find literally HUNDREDS of dance team members! They were everywhere, many still in costume. This normally wouldn’t bother me except they would scream out their cheers in the middle of a queue or just block the walkways and be pretty much obnoxious (where are their chaperones?). Trust me, no one except your own little group finds you that hilarious! Oh, to be young again…
I went over to the Voyage of the Little Mermaid to see when the next show was, and they were ushering last minute arrivals in for the 1pm show so I rushed in as well. I sat in the corner of the back row, but I didn’t care because I had just made it! This is also another cute presentation, and Ariel always has such a beautiful voice. Her kiss with Prince Eric at the end is such an ‘awww’ moment!
After this show was over, I had a bathroom break (darn liquid diet!) and headed over to see Beauty and the Beast (B&B) at 1:45pm…another very talented cast, and I’m glad this show hasn’t gone the way of the Hunchback of Notre Dame show. B&B always seems crowded, so perhaps they are safe for a little while longer!
I checked the Wait Board for The Great Movie Ride and it was 30 minutes, so I decided to catch the movie at the Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream exhibit. It was over 13 minutes away and I’ve already seen the rest of the exhibit on previous visits, so I headed back out and found a nice sunny bench to call my brother back in California. Today was his 50th birthday, and I wanted to wish him a Happy Birthday even though I couldn’t be with him. I also talked to my 80-year-old mother until the music for Block Party Bash (BPB) started up and it was hard to hear them!
I hung up and checked out the wait for Walt’s movie and it was now another 11 minutes away, so I decided to just head on over to Epcot as it was already 3:15pm. I went through the shops along Hollywood Boulevard, since the sidewalks were lined with people watching BPB. I had seen this several times previously at Disney’s California Adventure, and it looks like it hasn’t changed much…still fun and full of energy! I exited the park and hopped aboard the tram that was waiting just for me; soon I was in my car and driving over to Epcot.
I flashed my parking ticket at the attendant and headed into the parking lot. No one was directing traffic, so I just kept driving up as close as I could to the entrance (dodging guests as I drove along). I stopped just short of the accessible parking and quickly found my spot (row 14?). I gathered my stuff and walked over to bag check. I was soon through the turnstiles, and I headed over to Innoventions West for the Disney Visa Card Meet & Greet.
It was about 4pm (it’s only open 1:30-4:30pm daily), and several people were in line before me. It moved pretty quickly and soon I went around the corner to find Mickey and Minnie…and then here comes Goofy too! Wow…I was thrilled to have a trio of my favorite characters to greet me (especially a tall one – Goofy!). This time Mickey was a little friendlier and hugged me as well as gave me ‘kisses’ (I guess he just had a bad day yesterday!). The photographer snapped a few shots and I was soon on my way.
I hadn’t ridden Spaceship Earth yet, as it had quite a line yesterday. This time it was only a 5-minute wait so I walked right in! I liked the changes, and thought the little video they do to distract you on your descent was funny. I walked into the Siemens exhibit and found a lot of people standing around the center looking up at their faces that kept popping up on the screen. I soon found mine and saw it zip over to Sacramento, as that’s where I live. I also stood in line to send a ‘picture’ postcard to my hubby. It seemed to work until it was sent, and then it said that there was an error and it only sent a generic one. Oh well…anything that’s free!
I went back to the Camera Center to get my free photo and then headed over to Test Track to check out the Single Rider line. It showed a 20-minute wait, and I debated having a bathroom break first (darn liquid diet!), but chose to take my chances with the line. When I went inside, I was surprised the line was as long as it was and began to doubt my decision. However, I was in the pre-show at the 20-minute mark and soon in the front row of my test vehicle. This attraction is such a blast…I love acting scared in the photo! We got up to 65 mph, and then I was on my way to World Showcase.
I went into the Mexico Pavilion and had a ‘private’ cruise on the Gran Fiesta Tour. Great timing, as several people were lining up when I returned. Next I headed on over to Norway to see what the wait time was for Maelstrom. It was a 30-minute wait (no thanks), so I picked up a FP and headed on to China.
It was almost time for a performance by the acrobats, and I debated waiting to see them. However, I was more interested in seeing The American Adventure again (I told you it was my favorite attraction in Epcot!), so I continued on my journey.
As I was passing Italy, I saw the World Showcase Players putting on their version of Romeo & Juliet so I stopped to have a laugh or two; always entertaining. I continued on to the American Pavilion and they were bringing people in through the exit for the 6:45pm showing of The American Adventure. I again had a great time, and soon was heading back to ride Maelstrom with my FP. The wait was down to about 20 minutes now, and absolutely no one was in the FP line…I walked straight in and onto the next boat.
After battling the trolls and avoiding the polar bears, I watched the short movie on Norway. A lot of people will walk on through and not stay the 5 minutes or so to see this. I admit we have done that a couple of times, but I do like to see the movie once in awhile! Afterwards, I exited the pavilion and headed back to Future World.
As I walked up to The Seas Pavilion, I enjoyed the ‘Mine! Mine! Mine!’ calls of the seagulls…always hilarious! I walked right on for a ride on The Seas with Nemo & Friends seacabs. They certainly did a very good job with this new version, and I’m glad to have the seacabs back in service again. I checked out the aquarium and while the manatees had already retired for the evening, the dolphins were swimming around entertaining the few people watching them.
I had about 30-40 minutes before Illuminations at 9pm, so I headed back in that direction. I looked at the Wait Board, and there was only a 5-minute wait at Spaceship Earth, so I decided to take another ride. This time I changed the options for the video during the descent, and the postcard worked fine when I emailed it home.
I headed toward the lagoon and had a nice vantage point to see Illuminations. That fire barge always amazes me, and I just LOVE the music! Fortunately, everything worked this time although it was over all too soon. I tried to stay ahead of the masses and walked straight out to my car. I had thought briefly about trying to catch the 10pm presentation of Fantasmic! over at the Studios, but ultimately decided that I was just too tired and would just settle for Disneyland’s version when I visit there in April.
I was back in my room by 10pm, called my hubby, and then started packing for my trip home tomorrow. Today I walked over 19,000 steps, and was exhausted when I went to bed around midnight!
Monday, March 10, 2008
Plan: Check-out of the Ramada, shop at World of Disney and Disney’s Character Warehouse, fly home to Sacramento
Actual: Today my goal was to be at the Marketplace when they opened at 9:30am, so I got up, loaded the car, and checked-out around 9am ($211). I stopped at the ‘Concierge’ desk to ask them to print off my boarding passes, and then I was on my way to do some shopping. I had pretty much no traffic, and got a terrific parking spot very close to World of Disney (WoD). I first headed over to Mickey’s Mart, which is the $10 and under store. Sometimes they have some great deals here, but this time I only spent about $14 on gifts and other stuff.
I walked back to WoD and did some more damage…about $34 for the Finding Nemo – The Musical CD, Mickey earrings, and other miscellaneous items (after the 10% Disney Visa card discount). I went out to my car and had another shake, before heading to do more shopping!
I drove over to the Disney’s Character Warehouse at the Prime One Outlets, and purchased some clothes and jewelry for about $90…now I was done! I stopped at the nearby Hess station and filled up the SUV ($26), then drove over to the Orlando Airport ($2.25 in tolls). I quickly returned my rental car to Avis and unloaded all of my gear for the trek over to the terminal. I checked-in at the American Airlines ticket counter, and was able to secure exit row seating for both flights (yay – more legroom for me!). I breezed through security and headed to my gate with plenty of time before my 3:25pm flight to DFW.
We departed and arrived on time in Dallas, and I spent my 2 ½ hour layover playing ‘musical gates’, since they kept changing it! There was a problem with the incoming flight being delayed, which was going to delay our outgoing departure two hours, but fortunately they found another plane and we were only ½ late departing for Sacramento. We were a few minutes late arriving that night, but it was a good flight and I was able to doze somewhat.
I collected my bag and called hubby, who was waiting just off the beaten path for my call. He picked me up and we were home around 10pm; I was very tired but pleased with my trip!
Summary
Another fun, but short, trip!
Highlights include:
Winning the Year of a Million Dreams prize, even though I didn’t have time to use it
Hitting all of my favorites at all four of the parks
Staying ahead of the crowds
As always ~ just being at Walt Disney World again!
Lowlights include:
Touring without my hubby (his fault, though)
The cool weather (was hoping for 80 degrees both days!)
Loud obnoxious dance team participants
So many bathroom breaks (darn liquid diet!)
Next up is our annual Spring trip to Disneyland April 9-14…can’t wait!