hlbtimes2
05-11-2006, 07:45 AM
Trip report for May 5-7.
Me and my two best friends made a “Girls weekend” trip to the parks this weekend. And, wow, it was a great weekend to be there! The weather was good and the crowds low. One friend “K” had not been in about 20 years, and “S” hadn’t been in about 11 years. Me? Well, it was my 3rd visit in 8 months. Not bad for someone who lives in Seattle. We each have 2 children. They all stayed home with various dads and grandparents for the weekend.
S flew down early Thursday morning and spent the day some of her family. K and I flew down that evening. We got in around 9:30. We rented a car from Alamo, and were on our way. We checked in to the hotel, touched base with S, and ran to the store for some diet coke and water. We got back a little after 11, and S was just getting dropped of. We chatted briefly and went to bed.
My goal was to get the two of them up and moving early enough to catch the 8:30 shuttle from the CCI. That meant we needed to be eating breakfast around 8. We did it! We all managed to be ready on time and out the door as planned. Grabbed a quick bite and hoped on the shuttle. We made it right in to the park. Our first stop was Mad Hatter for mouse ears. We made it in and out of there pretty quick. By 9am rope drop we had a locker rented and were ready to hit the rides.
First stop, Space Mt. Just had a wait a couple minutes and we were on. Next we headed over to Autopia. It was about a 10-15 minute wait at the most. We each had our own car. After that we rode the train around to NOS. Walked right in to HM. Loved the new effects. Then we hit Splash Mt. Not a long wait, maybe 15 min or so. The lines every where, most of the weekend were super short. I think we used 3 fast passes all weekend. One for Buzz, and one for Soarin, and Indy. Anyway, after splash we wandered around that area for a bit. The girls wanted pictures and autographs with Pooh and the gang. We then rode Pooh and were pretty much done with that corner of the park. It was a little after 12 at this point. It was a very full morning! We had lunch at Hungry Bear. Why on earth is service so slow there? It takes FOREVER to get your food. We all had bacon cheese burgers. I like the buns they use there.
After lunch we wandered through NOS for a few minutes. I had never been in the sparkly shop, so made it a point to stop in . Fell in love with a sapphire ring, but didn’t even ask the price. I know it wasn’t coming home with me. Then we picked up FP for Indy, stand by was only about 20 minutes, but we got FP anyway.. The return time was only about 30-40 minutes out. We took a ride on Jungle cruise. Had a skipper named Jack. He was an older guy, and did a good job. Then we picked up dole whips/ floats and went into the tiki room. By time we were done it was time to ride Indy. They both really liked it!
After Indy S was wanting some cotton candy. We picked some up on main street and found a spot near the matterhorn for the parade. It was still a ways off. We took turns leaving to take pictures, look around etc. S and I were going to try to ride matterhorn, but the line was pretty long and we didn’t know if we would make it back for the parade or not. They really loved the parade. I took some great pictures. I have one of Peter pan in the middle of a jump. He looks like he is flying. I’ll try to post it when I get home tonight.
After the parade it was time to head back to the hotel for a break and to pick up warm clothes for the evening. S went to sit in the hot tub, and I drove K to the store for some foot care products. We had a short rest when we got back to the hotel. We caught the 6 pm shuttle back to the parks. It was Cinco de Mayo and S is Hispanic. She was insisting we have some margaritas. Who could argue with that? We waited about 15 minutes and got an outside table at Tortilla Jo’s. They had a mariachi band playing, and it was just a fun festive place to be. It was busy, so service seemed a bit slow. The food was pretty good.
After dinner it was time to find a place for fireworks. By 8 the hub was starting to fill up. We found a spot near the partners statue. There wasn’t room for all three of us on the bench, but it was better then nothing. We took turns leaving to get popcorn, candy and go potty. The fireworks were good, as usual. However, since the two of them are not that familiar with the rides/ park/ history, a lot of it was really lost on them. They enjoyed them, and of course, LOVED Tink, but it just wasn’t the same feeling for them as it is for me. After the fireworks we fought our way over to watch the 10:30 F. We got there a little before 10, so had a bit to wait. The both really loved F! S had seen it during her trip 10 years ago, but K had not seen it.
After F! we went to Fantasyland. We got right on Mr. Toad, and waited about 15 min for Peter Pan. Then we rode the Story book boats. Madeline was our tour guide. She was very perky and happy considering it was that late at night. She told the whole tour in a very animated way. K and S were both very tired by this point. It was almost midnight. S and I jumped in line for matterhorn, while K went to buy something on main street. I love the matterhorn, but it really needs some work done on the tracks. Its so bumpy, I always hurt when I get done riding it. We slowly made our way down main street. We missed the 12:15 shuttle, so we just waited for the 12:45.
Me and my two best friends made a “Girls weekend” trip to the parks this weekend. And, wow, it was a great weekend to be there! The weather was good and the crowds low. One friend “K” had not been in about 20 years, and “S” hadn’t been in about 11 years. Me? Well, it was my 3rd visit in 8 months. Not bad for someone who lives in Seattle. We each have 2 children. They all stayed home with various dads and grandparents for the weekend.
S flew down early Thursday morning and spent the day some of her family. K and I flew down that evening. We got in around 9:30. We rented a car from Alamo, and were on our way. We checked in to the hotel, touched base with S, and ran to the store for some diet coke and water. We got back a little after 11, and S was just getting dropped of. We chatted briefly and went to bed.
My goal was to get the two of them up and moving early enough to catch the 8:30 shuttle from the CCI. That meant we needed to be eating breakfast around 8. We did it! We all managed to be ready on time and out the door as planned. Grabbed a quick bite and hoped on the shuttle. We made it right in to the park. Our first stop was Mad Hatter for mouse ears. We made it in and out of there pretty quick. By 9am rope drop we had a locker rented and were ready to hit the rides.
First stop, Space Mt. Just had a wait a couple minutes and we were on. Next we headed over to Autopia. It was about a 10-15 minute wait at the most. We each had our own car. After that we rode the train around to NOS. Walked right in to HM. Loved the new effects. Then we hit Splash Mt. Not a long wait, maybe 15 min or so. The lines every where, most of the weekend were super short. I think we used 3 fast passes all weekend. One for Buzz, and one for Soarin, and Indy. Anyway, after splash we wandered around that area for a bit. The girls wanted pictures and autographs with Pooh and the gang. We then rode Pooh and were pretty much done with that corner of the park. It was a little after 12 at this point. It was a very full morning! We had lunch at Hungry Bear. Why on earth is service so slow there? It takes FOREVER to get your food. We all had bacon cheese burgers. I like the buns they use there.
After lunch we wandered through NOS for a few minutes. I had never been in the sparkly shop, so made it a point to stop in . Fell in love with a sapphire ring, but didn’t even ask the price. I know it wasn’t coming home with me. Then we picked up FP for Indy, stand by was only about 20 minutes, but we got FP anyway.. The return time was only about 30-40 minutes out. We took a ride on Jungle cruise. Had a skipper named Jack. He was an older guy, and did a good job. Then we picked up dole whips/ floats and went into the tiki room. By time we were done it was time to ride Indy. They both really liked it!
After Indy S was wanting some cotton candy. We picked some up on main street and found a spot near the matterhorn for the parade. It was still a ways off. We took turns leaving to take pictures, look around etc. S and I were going to try to ride matterhorn, but the line was pretty long and we didn’t know if we would make it back for the parade or not. They really loved the parade. I took some great pictures. I have one of Peter pan in the middle of a jump. He looks like he is flying. I’ll try to post it when I get home tonight.
After the parade it was time to head back to the hotel for a break and to pick up warm clothes for the evening. S went to sit in the hot tub, and I drove K to the store for some foot care products. We had a short rest when we got back to the hotel. We caught the 6 pm shuttle back to the parks. It was Cinco de Mayo and S is Hispanic. She was insisting we have some margaritas. Who could argue with that? We waited about 15 minutes and got an outside table at Tortilla Jo’s. They had a mariachi band playing, and it was just a fun festive place to be. It was busy, so service seemed a bit slow. The food was pretty good.
After dinner it was time to find a place for fireworks. By 8 the hub was starting to fill up. We found a spot near the partners statue. There wasn’t room for all three of us on the bench, but it was better then nothing. We took turns leaving to get popcorn, candy and go potty. The fireworks were good, as usual. However, since the two of them are not that familiar with the rides/ park/ history, a lot of it was really lost on them. They enjoyed them, and of course, LOVED Tink, but it just wasn’t the same feeling for them as it is for me. After the fireworks we fought our way over to watch the 10:30 F. We got there a little before 10, so had a bit to wait. The both really loved F! S had seen it during her trip 10 years ago, but K had not seen it.
After F! we went to Fantasyland. We got right on Mr. Toad, and waited about 15 min for Peter Pan. Then we rode the Story book boats. Madeline was our tour guide. She was very perky and happy considering it was that late at night. She told the whole tour in a very animated way. K and S were both very tired by this point. It was almost midnight. S and I jumped in line for matterhorn, while K went to buy something on main street. I love the matterhorn, but it really needs some work done on the tracks. Its so bumpy, I always hurt when I get done riding it. We slowly made our way down main street. We missed the 12:15 shuttle, so we just waited for the 12:45.