Trip Report It's a Jolly Holiday! COMPLETED

Tuvalu · Feb 9, 2016

We exited SSE into an extremely crowded Future World. We had a little more personal space once we walked past the fountains. Only a few minutes longer and we arrived here:

Booking the last-minute ADR at San Angel Inn ended up being a GREAT decision ~ we were promptly seated, had a fabulous server, the chips were warm and crunchy and the food delicious!! Em even had a margarita to perk herself up.

Once our relaxing lunch was over, we joined the line for the boat ride. You know Epcot is crowded when you have to wait in line for the Mexico boat ride! I had read about the "new addition" at the end, but intentionally had not looked at any pictures because I wanted to be surprised. I delighted in my moment of nostalgia:
< SPOILER ALERT, SKIP PIC IF YOU WANT TO BE SURPRISED ON YOUR NEXT VISIT >

The Three Caballeros!!! In audio-animatronic glory!!!

The Mickey Mouse Revue was one of my top 5 attractions when I started visiting the Magic Kingdom and I was devastated when it was shipped to Tokyo Disneyland. Why didn't Tokyo Disneyland build its own MMR??!! I did not learn the answer until I read Realityland by David Koenig (which is an excellent book on the early history of WDW, I highly recommend it!) I still recall Donald "running" back and forth between the theater balconies. A few years ago I stumbled across a YouTube video of the Mickey Mouse Revue...in Japanese!! I had to mute the sound because it was hilariously distracting and I wanted my mind to take me back as I watched each scene unfold. I was surprised that I remembered the order of the stories. So seeing The Three Caballeros perform again after 30+ years was a real treat

. If the line had been shorter, we would have ridden again.

Em wanted to catch a few Holiday Storytellers, and in order for the timing to work out we needed to travel counter-clockwise around World Showcase (a bummer since we were already in Mexico!) We caught the tail end of the Canadian Holiday Voyageurs. Father Christmas was getting ready to start as we passed United Kingdom but we did not stop to listen; we have seen all the Storytellers on previous visits and only wanted to catch our favorites today.

Woody left us when we reached the International Gateway; he had a business call to attend and we'd meet up later back at the Lodge. Em and I wandered around France and Morocco, but we quickly bypassed Japan since we are not fans of the female drummers. (Either these drummers are extremely talented and we just don't "get it" or they actually do sound like toddlers banging on toy drums.)

Em got some ice cream in America to soothe her throat and we watched Helga and the Nutcracker in Germany. We then double-backed to Italy to watch our favorite La Befana:

Love how the train set is decked out for the holidays:

Our final Storyteller was Sigrid (and the mischievous gnome Julenissen):

catmom46 · Feb 9, 2016

You might want to put the Caballeros pic in an actual spoiler - kinda hard to avoid looking at it when it's right there.

Tuvalu · Feb 9, 2016

catmom46 said:
You might want to put the Caballeros pic in an actual spoiler - kinda hard to avoid looking at it when it's right there.

I'm sorry...you incorrectly assume I actually know how to do that!

Tuvalu · Feb 9, 2016

Fortunately for Em and me, the bus back to WL pulled up as soon as we arrived at the bus depot. And being the first stop, we were back at the Lodge in no time

. Woody was still working when we entered our room and Em immediately settled down for a nap. She was really starting to feel puny :depressed:

.

After a couple hours of rest, we took the boat over to Ft. Wilderness. Several years ago we discovered what many feel is the best value buffet on Disney property ~ Trail's End. For around $20, guests received an extensive salad bar (including pasta salad), chili, assorted hot veggies (including build-your-own baked potato), fried chicken, baked chicken, pulled pork, spare ribs, a choice of two meats at the carving station, rolls and lots of yummy desserts (including ice cream.) The atmosphere is laid back and very casual.

The price seems to increase by a dollar or so each year and is now $27. And up until this visit, we continued to be pleased with the offerings. But now the salad bar has been eliminated, and with it went the shredded cheese (which was a good chili topping) and baked potatoes. No more baked chicken, only fried. Only one meat (beef strip loin) at the carving station. It remains a good value when compared to other Disney buffets, but is no longer the bargain it once was.

It definitely was no bargain for Em. She did not have much of an appetite and barely ate. She wouldn't have even come to dinner except she did not want to miss the after-dinner plan. Too add insult to injury, we were seated at a table near the kitchen and the a/c blast made for a chilly meal.

But the pulled pork and spare ribs were exceptional (more BBQ! :joyfull:

)

Every vacation we try to do something new, and tonight we were taking a Holiday Sleigh Ride through the campground. Campers (RV-ers?) go all out decorating their campsites. We normally walk through the loops near Trail's End and Pioneer Hall, but it was time to switch things up!

It was a delightful 25 minute ride past festive campsites with twinkling lights and giant inflatables (The Good Dinosaur seemed to be the new popular favorite, along with "Holiday" Yoda and Darth Vader.) If Em had been feeling better, she would have brought her camera along and captured some great shots to share. Oh well.

Our horse, Doug (isn't he a beaut?) used to be the headless horseman's horse in the MNSSHP parade. We received a neat commemorative pin at the conclusion of our ride.

As we made our way to the boat dock for our return to the Lodge, we saw the first skyrocket for Holiday Wishes. We stood on the dock and watched the rest of the show. The reflection on the water from some of the fireworks was beautiful. When it was over, we had about a 10 minute wait for the boat. As we waited, we (along with a few others) noticed a blazing orange streak in the sky. A quick Google search revealed it was the launch of a SpaceX rocket from Port Canaveral. Cool!

Fireworks count: 6 shows (plus one rocket!), 5 nights

MinnieM123 · Feb 10, 2016

Oh, I'd love to take that holiday ride through Fort Wilderness! :inlove:

As for the buffet, I've never been there for the dinner one. (Too bad that they cut out a few of your favorite items, though.) Years ago, they used to also offer a lunchtime buffet (it wasn't quite as extensive as the dinner one), and it was cheaper in price. I did try that once and I liked it. (Also, at that time, I was staying at WL, so it was just an easy boat ride over to FW.)

Your sighting of the orange streak in the sky from the SpaceX rocket was very exciting!! :happy:

fractal · Feb 10, 2016

Love the CM's with the lightsabers!

I totally agree about Sunset Ranch - you hit it on the right day.

Em's doing a fine job with the camera!

Tuvalu · Feb 15, 2016

Tuesday, December 22
It was another wafflelicious morning for the ladies ~ I joined Em at the "dark side" and had chocolate chip waffles too! :hungry:

. Woody ate healthy, yogurt and a banana. He had a 9 a.m. call, which he took in his "WL office", a quiet nook overlooking the lobby. He has worked in this spot several times before and finds it to be one of the most pleasant offices he has ever worked in!

Em and I arrived at AK shortly after park opening. We usually only visit AK during the cooler months of the year, as we find all the thick foliage creates a "greenhouse effect" which makes AK more hot, humid and sticky than the other parks. There are also some bad childhood memories associated with AK, which we have tried to overcome. We WANT to like this park, and maybe when Rivers of Light and Avatarland open, AK will be a must-do every trip.

But today, poor Em got pulled aside for this:

She looks dangerous, doesn't she?

We like the AK tree:

Our first destination was the safari. Most of the refurbishment walls that lined Discovery Island through all of 2015 were gone, giving the area a much more open feel. (We always felt AK was a bit claustrophobic even before the walls.) We walked the queue without stopping and boarded the second jeep. Our safaris tend to be hit-or-miss with animal sightings, but today was a HIT!

Mama and baby giraffe:

Adult and baby warthogs enjoying their breakfast:

Alert and roaming cheetahs:

Em said, "Ewww, Mom why did you take a picture of that elephant?" I had no idea what she meant until I reviewed my pictures...yup, this one is definitely male.

Here are the new African dogs that were recently added to the savanna. We found them more frightening than cute.

This was my favorite moment ~ a nursing baby rhino!

I requested a walk on the tiger trail next. I think tigers are absolutely gorgeous. All three tigers were asleep...typical cats!!

Afterwards, we watched people getting drenched on Kali River Rapids (too cold for us!), laughed at the swinging monkeys, and shopped in the newly-expanded Disney Outfitters. Em likes Everest but doesn't like to ride alone (I can't ride it) and neither of us felt like Dinosaur, so we began to make our way to the exit. AK was quickly becoming VERY crowded, and feelings of claustrophobia were starting to kick in.

Tuvalu · Feb 15, 2016

I texted Woody once we were on the bus to MK and asked if he was available to meet us for lunch. Skipper Canteen opened last week and we wanted to give it a try! The restaurant was only doing walk-ups and we had no idea how long the wait would be ~ so we decided whoever arrived first would put our name on the list.

Em and I got there before Woody and were told it was a 15-20 minute wait. We sat down outside and the buzzer immediately went off! Thinking it was a mistake, I found a cast member who confirmed that indeed our table was ready. Woody had not yet arrived, so I asked if we could wait to be seated. The server obliged and shortly Woody joined us and we were led to our table.

We sat in the Mess Hall, which was nostalgic for us as it still had the same windows and chandeliers from when it was the Adventureland Verandah (which closed sometime in the 90s.) We never visited when this space was Pixie Hollow.

Our server did Jungle Cruise shtick and we played along. The "backstory" of the restaurant was on the menu:

Our server (skipper?) brought bread to us before taking our lunch order. None of us cared for the honey dipping sauce which came with the bread (which was pretty bland on its own.) Our entrees were better. I had "A Lot of Steak" Salad:

I chose this salad because I am a huge fan of red peppers (can you see any? Don't confuse the cherry tomato for a red pepper!) and cucumbers (not a one!) I have since read other reviews of this salad and all have mentioned the absence of cucumber

. I found the steak to be flavorful and tender (not chewy, as some have complained) and overall thought the salad was very good...with red peppers and cucumbers, it would have been SPECTACULAR!

Woody and Em both ordered the Char Siu Pork; he had five grain rice, she had white rice.

They both enjoyed the pork. I asked for a bite. You know the feeling when you taste something and you are instantly transported back in time? In an instant I was in a Chinese restaurant with my childhood BFF enjoying a sliced pork appetizer that tasted exactly like this! Whenever we had Chinese food, we always ordered the pork and tempura chicken tenders off the appetizer menu. Does anyone know what that pork was? Was it a Northern (more specifically New England) thing? Because since I moved to the South (many years ago) I have never seen a sliced pork appetizer on any Chinese restaurant menu.

More pictures of the interior:

Tuvalu · Feb 15, 2016

The detail in the carpet:

The restroom was quite ornate...don't worry, I am not a creeper, I waited until the room was empty!

The exquisite sink:

We did not have any dessert (you'll know why later!) When the check came, I handed our server/skipper my Tables in Wonderland card and was told they stopped honoring the TiW discount

. This did not fare well with me, and I told the manager on our way out that it did not seem right to honor the card last week and not this week. She said it had something to do with a test and they were "still deciding" if the restaurant would participate in TiW.

Well, we are "still deciding" if we will return to Skipper Canteen.

Tuvalu · Feb 15, 2016

Last night I had switched our fastpasses from AK to MK (when I learned Woody had that meeting). It was great to have 3 attractions with short waits in the midst of crazy Christmas crowds!

This was the standby wait for Jingle Cruise:

A hundred and five minutes!!!

Thank you, FP+ :happy:

Love the gators' "stockings"!

We had FPs for Winnie the Pooh and Buzz too. We also rode TTA and the moving park bench. Then it was dessert time...yummy sundaes from the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor!
< Insert mental picture here >
Can't believe I forgot to photograph our sundaes! :facepalm:

We finished our treats just in time to watch "Mickey's Once Upon A Christmastime" parade in its entirety. Enjoy these excellent pictures by photog Em:

We headed out of MK at the conclusion of the parade. Em's cold was taking a toll on her and she returned to the Lodge to rest. Woody and I rode the boat to the GF so I could buy chocolate-dipped shingles for my brother (what a nice sister I am!) Then we boarded the monorail, disembarking at the Contemporary in order to take a twilight cruise back to WL.

Woody and I picked up dinner for the 3 of us from Roaring Fork and brought it up to our room. We decided a relaxing evening in our room was the best way to end the day. Of course that included watching Holiday Wishes from our balcony!

Fireworks count: 7 shows (plus one rocket!), 6 nights

Tuvalu · Feb 16, 2016

Wednesday, December 23
Poor Em woke up feeling miserable...she could have been the poster child for Mucinex :depressed:

. We knew she must have been really sick in order to pass up her last opportunity to see the MK Welcome Show (even at the early hour of 6:45 a.m.) Em and I love the Welcome Show...we sing along, look for our favorite Trolley performers and are giddy with excitement at the start of a new Disney day. To be on vacation and NOT see the show at least once is unimaginable. But as the saying goes, there's a first time for everything...and this might be our first trip without Christopher George Weaver (or Smokey Miller or Scoop Sanderson) welcoming us to THE MAGIC KINGDOM!

Still, Em wasn't about to give up her final day in the parks so she took some cold meds and we made it to the MK by 8:30 a.m. Our first stop was Sleepy Hollow for (you guessed it!) WAFFLES :hungry:

.

We shared two of these little beauties:

Admit it...you want one now, don't you?

After breakfast, Em requested Peter Pan's Flight. We always got a fastpass for this attraction until the recent refurb. We enjoy the new queue as much as the ride itself! The posted wait time was 60 minutes, but we couldn't say no to our sick child so we joined the line. Woody was given one of those red timer cards. Our actual wait time was only 35 minutes, so when we exited I hurried to the standby sign to see the "new" wait time (supposedly timed by our red card).

65 minutes??!! The standby wait got LONGER??!!

We had a good chuckle as we headed for Em's next pick, Little Mermaid. The park was getting very crowded so it was important to choose rides that could handle lots of people at once. LM certainly does! Once we returned from our trip under the sea we went to use our first FP at Space Mountain. My family let me sit in front :happy:

.

Since guests are forced to exit into the Tomorrowland Light & Power Co., we had to check out the custom MagicBand and phone case displays. There it was...the elusive purple MagicBand! It proved too tempting for Em:

She was pleased with her purchase, not just because of the color but because the band is thinner and more flexible than a standard MagicBand. Em said it was more comfortable to wear (it ought to be for $24.95!)

I yielded to the temptation of a new phone case:

How cute is this?!

The customization process takes from 30-40 minutes, so we rode TTA to pass the time. I saw a CM notification stating that re-rides (asking the CM if you can stay in your car and ride again) were not allowed today. We opted to see Carousel of Progress (another people-eater) next.

We returned to Tomorrowland Light & Power Co. to get our packages then did Philharmagic and Haunted Mansion (FP) before lunching (again) at BOG. We sat in the Rose Gallery this time and enjoyed tasty roast beef sandwiches...followed by 3 Master's cupcakes (we are predictable!)

Rode the moving park bench from Fantasyland to Frontierland to use FP #3 at Big Thunder. We stopped at a kiosk to get a 4th FP for later tonight (most FP availability was for after 7 p.m.) before returning to our room for a rest break.

Tuvalu · Feb 16, 2016

Woody was working when Em and I left for DHS. We HAD to see the Osborne Lights one FINAL time! When the switch was flipped, we Weeping Wandas were in fine form again :cry:

. But this time the tears weren't just for the beauty; they were also for the reality of the finality.

Love the ice on the air conditioner!

Em and I wandered around trying to burn the sight into our brains. (A "core memory" we can bring forth whenever we want!) We were glad the area wasn't too crowded.

Farewell, Osborne Lights...we are gonna miss you!!!

MinnieM123 · Feb 17, 2016

Wow! This is such a fun TR. You and your family experienced so many things in a relatively short time. (I really enjoyed the parade pictures, in particular, by the way.) :joyfull:

Your experience at Skipper Canteen was bizarre though, when they refused your discount card. My question is, shouldn't they have posted some sort of sign (or verbally mentioned) that they were not honoring the card the day you went there--seeing as they honored it a week prior to that? Customers don't appreciate "surprises" like that, when they're paying for something . . .

Tuvalu · Feb 17, 2016

We like to spend our last vacation night in the MK and tonight was no different. Em and I caught the bus and met Woody at Pecos Bill's for dinner; we wanted to try out the new menu offerings. I liked my chicken fajitas (minus the tortillas, as they were stale) and Woody said his Southwest burger was good. Em didn't have much of an appetite and settled on the kids quesadilla.

Holiday Wishes had just started as we left the restaurant. We walked a bit and found a spot to stand in front of Liberty Tree Tavern, which ended up being a decent viewing location. When the show was over, it was time for our Pooh fastpass. Lots of cast members were directing foot traffic patterns, so we were able to move pretty quickly. This was definitely our most crowded park day, and there seemed to be even more people arriving tonight. The three of us were growing weary, so I requested one last ride on TTA ~ we rarely get to ride it at night and Tomorrowland is so cool illuminated.

It was a slow walk out of the park. Em and I adore these Main Street window displays:

Upon our return to the Lodge we picked up treats from Roaring Fork which we enjoyed back in our room. We fell asleep to the sound of tooting boat horns ~ MK was open until 3 a.m.!

Goodbye, castle!

Fireworks count: 8 shows (plus one rocket!), 7 nights :happy:

Tuvalu · Feb 17, 2016

Thursday, December 24
We wanted to be able to join the rest of our family at the Christmas Eve service, so we were pulling out of the WL lot at 6:45 a.m. We ate our muffins (they travel better than waffles

) and drank our beverages from Roaring Fork once we were on the highway.

Woody and I traded off the driving (more rain, ugh!) We lunched at Chick Fil A and arrived home safely mid-afternoon. Once home, I was able to really appreciate all the preparations I had done prior to leaving for WDW! And though we did not get to watch any fireworks tonight, Santa came!!

Poly had another week to enjoy her tree climbing. New Year's brought this:

Thanks for joining us on our Jolly Holiday! Em and I are headed back to the World tomorrow...she is running the Glass Slipper Challenge and her aunt and I will be cheering her on!!

See Ya Real Soon :happy:

Jae99 · Feb 17, 2016

Thanks for the great trip report! It looks like you and your family had an amazing trip, even though Em wasn't feeling the best. After seeing the picture of the Nutella and Fruit Waffle my mouth started watering. Sleepy Hollow was my families favourite breakfast spot during our trip in December. Probably not the healthiest breakfast but definitely the tastiest!

Figment Forever · Feb 17, 2016

Thanks for such an awesome TR - I enjoyed reading it. So sorry that Em wasn't feeling well. It stinks to be sick in WDW! Good Luck to Em with The Glass Slipper Challenge! Hoping you will post about it!

Tuvalu · Feb 18, 2016

@lostpro9het, @Doc Disney and @gwhb75 ~ I've finished mine, time to finish yours

lostpro9het · Feb 18, 2016

Tuvalu said:
@lostpro9het, @Doc Disney and @gwhb75 ~ I've finished mine, time to finish yours

Whelp... I better get on it then.

blreinsel · Feb 18, 2016

Great TR! Thanks for letting us tag along.

So jealous that you're currently in the World.. Ugh have another magical time!

Trip Report It's a Jolly Holiday! COMPLETED

Tuvalu

catmom46

Well-Known Member

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

MinnieM123

fractal

Well-Known Member

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

MinnieM123

Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Jae99

Well-Known Member

Figment Forever

Well-Known Member

Tuvalu

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member

blreinsel

Well-Known Member

Trip Report It's a Jolly Holiday! *COMPLETED*

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Trip Report It's a Jolly Holiday! COMPLETED