Pre, During, and Post Trip Report - Spring Break 2012

Day 1 and 2

Day 1 - March 31st

Obviously, the arrival time in the World makes some of this morning up in the air. If we do manage to get in early, we will drive straight to Studios to do any of the big three (that Toy Story Midway Mania, Tower of Terror, and Rock'n'Roller Coaster) that we can get in before crowds arrive. The initial plan for Day 1 was no parks at all, but as we figured out the drive and the possibility of an early morning arrival we said we wouldn't rule it out! Regardless, we hope to be at Old Key West checking in around 10:30am. Odds are we won't have a room, so we'll just relax in the lobby and maybe by the pool. Then we'll catch the slow boat to Downtown Disney.

We have 12pm lunch reservations for Wolfgang Puck Cafe. Never had a meal in the real restaurant (the Express has treated us well before) but we have visited it before. A former student of mine was a line chef there a few years back so we got to go in and chat before they were open one day (he now has his own restaurant in NYC, by the way). After lunch, we'll shop a bit and then head back to OKW to move in and get settled. Late afternoon we'll start the journey to the Backyard BBQ.

We loves us the BBQ. Always there quite early and twice now we've been the very last to leave! That usually puts us back in the room around 10pm for much needed sleep. (last time, after the boat back to Contemporary, we had to quick run into MK for a ride - this time, I expect we'll be a too tired for that).

Day 2 - April 1st

Seeing as we are April Fools, we will be up around 6:30am to get to Epcot for rope drop (or maybe pre-rope drop as we hear that is all the rage). Upon entering, we hit the Character Spot first. Why?

Because if you are the first into the character spot, you get a group picture with all of them! Uh-oh, given away one of our secrets... While the ladies are doing that, I'll get FPs for Soarin' and tickets for Behind the Seeds for later in the day. Then we plan to hit the other side of Future World for Test Track (when does the refurb start?), Mission:Space, and Spaceship Earth. Expecting Sum of All Thrills to open around 9am, we hope to be toward the first in line for it, so we can still make it to:

9:35am, we have Akershus reservations to get our princess time in. Following that, we will likely do the two boats (Maelstrom and Rio de Tiempo) before heading back to the Land for Soarin' with FPs and the Behind the Seeds Tour at 12pm. This gets our tired bodies and minds back to the room around 2pm for at least a couple hours of napping.

5:30pm, we have Chef Mickey's reservations. (yes, that means in the space of our first 48 hours we will have met the Fab 5 three times, plus the princesses - yikes!) After dinner, into the MK we will go. And stay. And stay later. And stay even later. DDs goal is 1am at least. My hope is to cover Adventureland, Frontierland, and LIberty Square and catch fireworks and the nighttime parade. SO, hopefully at 2am we are snoozing away.

Day 3 and 4

Day 3 - Monday, April 2

Finally, we sleep in! If we hold to our usual habits, that will mean up by 9am or so. Most likely, our first real meal of the day will be an early lunch and we plan to have it at a resort. First choice is Mara at AKL - stayed there before and like the lunch choices, but that certainly could change by April!

Around noon, we'll head into Animal Kingdom. No major plans, just a hope that we can get FPs for something still (hopefully Everest or Safari). We'll catch some of the shows - certainly see Nemo late in the afternoon. We are Finding Nemo, the Musical fanatics. Bought the CD, it is in heavy rotation in the car all year long. Dinner will be counter service - possibly Yak and Yeti or maybe Restaurantosaurus. After dinner, we'll enjoy AK as much as we can until 8pm. One goal will be to do one of the last Safari's to leave the base camp. This is the one night where we will get DD to bed at regular time around 9pm and likely DW and I very soon after.

Day 4 - Tuesday, April 3

Back on the early morning shift for Magic Kingdom EMH at 7am. Based on previous visits, we know that we can do almost all of Fantasyland before regular opening. And that will be our goal. Obviously if the new Dumbos and Goofini are opened as expected, we'll do that as early as we can as well. At 10am (or 9am) we will be on the first raft to Tom Sawyer Island. Count us as a family that is quite concerned about rumors to change TSI. We try to visit on every trip - and twice have managed to score a paintbrush as well.

Around lunchtime, we will head out and make our way to the Grand Floridian where DD will be enjoying the Wonderland Tea (in a costume of course, there is quite a long tradition of DD in costumes).

Meanwhile DW and I visit Gasparilla's for a light lunch. Since we did an early morning, the hope is that we'll get back to the room around 3:30pm for a couple hours of naptime.

At 6pm we should be well on our way to Epcot for dinner at one of the World Showcase counters - either Yakitori or Tangierine Cafe, not sure which. We hope to enjoy everything that World Showcase has to offer as we stick around for the late night EMH. Possibly foregoing Illuminations to do some rides and activities while the crowd is around the lagoon. I don't think we've ever managed to stay in Epcot more than 30 minutes and one ride after Illuminations, so this will be a big night - especially for DD who really hopes to do Maelstrom at night. So, bedtime is sure to be after midnight!

Day 5, 6, and 7

Day 5 - Wednesday, April 4

Another early wake-up call so we can make it to Animal Kingdom by 7:30am for EMH at 8. That likely means Everest twice, then over to the safari and a couple of jungle walks. Around 9:30am we plan to be eating a late breakfast at Pizzafari (DD is looking forward to their breakfast menu). After dining, we'll catch the Lion King show and maybe one other activity at AK before heading out before it gets too hot and crowded.

The afternoon is pretty up in the air - napping, eating, pool, who knows! Hoping to maybe go to Welcome Home Wednesdays (first time) as our DD loves game shows and thinks a DVC game show would be excellent. But at 4pm we'll head to Studios for ADRs at 50s Prime Time at 4:30pm. After that it'll be a late night at the Studios. Hopefully Fantasmic will draw off the crowds and we can do quite a bit of touring during those shows. Once again, not to sleep before midnight, maybe even later!

Day 6 - Thursday, April 5

We expect that this will be the most difficult wake-up call as we are 6 days in and trying to get up for Magic Kingdom EMH at 7am. If we manage it, we will wipe out Tomorrowland in the morning and try to visit with Rapunzel at her first appearance. Then we will hit Cosmic Ray's for a very early lunch followed by our traditional DD haircut at the barbershop. She is very excited to be cutting off 8 inches of hair and donating it to charity!

Back to our room for much needed R&R at around noon. Upon full recovery (maybe 3pm?) we will head to Epcot to explore the Flower and Garden festival (no rides on the plan), visit the Rose and Crown, and maybe do a couple Kim Possible missions. We have dinner ressies at La Hacienda for 8pm and plan to arrive early and then wait for a table with a good lagoon view for Illuminations. Having heard mixed reviews of watching the show from inside, we decided to form our own opinions by giving it a try. After the show, we will do a little bit of EMH touring, but likely will get back to the room and sleep by 11pm.

Day 7 - Friday, April 6

Getaway day is traditionally left unplanned for us. We do whatever it is we have missed during the week. As of right now, that looks like it will be some Hollywood Studios rides and since it has a morning EMH we just might be getting up for that. A lot depends on our late night at Studios and how much we accomplish then! We do have a lunch reservation at Coral Reef for 1pm, so we will at least make a quick trip into Epcot for that. Again, we've heard such mixed reviews and aren't a big seafood family (I'm the only real seafood lover) but are working our way through trying just about everything and this was on the list! Hopefully we can get some relaxed touring or just enjoying ourselves before we pick up a counter service dinner to eat in the car and get on the road around 3 or 4pm. Then it will be a lovely 900+ miles of Interstate before we get home for Easter.

Parting Words

So, if you have any ideas or recommendations, please let us know. I'm sure some plans will change in the next two months, so I'll be back with updates before departure time. And, of course, I will have updates from the World while we are there and a Post-trip report when we finally get home. Hope you've enjoyed the read, see you soon!

My family will be down there the same time, April 1-6, so maybe our paths will cross?!?! We will be staying at Port Orleans French Quarter!! Have fun!

Phineas fo Prez said:

My family will be down there the same time, April 1-6, so maybe our paths will cross?!?! We will be staying at Port Orleans French Quarter!! Have fun!

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Excellent! Hope you have fun as well. Nice avatar!

So, here we are just over a month away. Adjusting some of our plans because of the change in FastPass policy. Don't really have a problem with the end time enforcement, but it certainly impacts some of our plans. We have always been a 'get the fastpasses early and often' family that uses them whenever we see fit. So, we'll have to pay a little more attention to those return times and make judgement calls about getting the FPs we might want.

Also, it is looking likely that the park hours will be changing for while we are there (based on all the changes that have been happening for March, we expect early April to follow suit at some point). So, we are now fully expecting some of those early mornings to be an hour earlier and maybe some of the late nights to start later.

In a couple weeks, we'll update those plans. Also, we found out that a family of close friends is going to not only be there the same week, but is following a very similar touring plan, so much of our trip, we will grow from 3 to 6 or even more!

Day 6 Addendum

So, we just came to the realization that the Rose and Crown Pub was not in the plans. That just had to change. DW has spent some time as a bartender at a local establishment and I lived in Scotland in my youth, so Rose and Crown is a destination that fits into our lives very well. Since Day 6 afternoon is not fully booked - with time for Flower and Garden touring and Kim Possible adventure - we are planning to add a brief (that means an hour) visit to the Rose and Crown. We can only hope that Carl, his almightyness, will be working at that time. This is added in the plan above in italics.

3 Weeks

So, now we are at the excitement phase. Reading all the different boards almost every day in anticipation... In reviewing plans with DD, we have added in the hopes for a visit to Sum of All Thrills whilst at Epcot and also the possibility of attending the Welcome Home Wednesday (we are DVC) at Atlantic Dance Hall on Wednesday of our visit. These things have also been added to the full plan above in italics.

I'm going to try to restrict myself to just one more post before the "During" phase of this Trip Report begins. Try being the operative word.

That picture of your daughter with the evil step sister is unreal - I loved that TR! Have a great time!

mamamouse said:

OMG too funny !!! my mom is making my kids the step sister dresses too,for our SEptember trip,my youngest will be Drizzella and my oldest will be anastasia

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Our DD has been Anastasia as well. Early on, she was Cinderella on a trip and the stepsisters both complained to her, so...next trip she was Anastasia, and the trip after that she was Drizella. In fact, on our Fall 2010 trip, she was both on the same night. If you want to see some pictures of that, check it out:

http://picasaweb.google.com/106279614017959388157/DisneyNovember2010?authkey=Gv1sRgCIWturCn5YDySg

The decision for this trip, is for a unique princess dress - not any actual character, so DW is busy sewing away to have it ready for her Tea Party!

LOVE the picture of your daughter with the step-sister. That's classic!

Sounds like you guys will have such a great time! Not too much longer til you go!!

derelicte19 said:

LOVE the picture of your daughter with the step-sister. That's classic!

Sounds like you guys will have such a great time! Not too much longer til you go!!

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Thanks! Just under three weeks until we are taking lots of new pictures. We'll be posting regularly during the trip, so you'll see us there!

BTW - you will be in the world on my birthday - enjoy it for me!

Under 1 week!

Couldn't resist posting one more pre-trip update.

Just finished the packing lists. Also finished our Guidebook - yes, we make our own guidebook for each visit - plans, menus, other assorted materials. This year, we are trying to travel light in the parks, so DW made some nice little folders to carry in our backpack - which is being limited to a few snacks, warm clothes storage, and camera. That's quite lean for us.

When the opening hours for the parks got updated last week, we adjusted some plans accordingly. Can't imagine missing morning EMH's - during Peak season, I can't imagine not using that early hour to hit all the headliners.

See you there! (oh, yeah, add the camera USB cable to the packing list!)

R U There

No, not the message from Cap'n Alphabet to Gonzo in Muppets from Space.

And, yes, we are here!

Survived the drive (in fact, after the standard horrendous traffic of the first three hours from north of Baltimore to south of DC it was an easy drive) and arrived at Old Key West somewhere around 8:30am.

As folks who usually drive in at the wee dark hours of the morning and are at the gates of a park on day 1, it was quite nice to come in with a relaxed pace. After check-in (sadly, room was not ready) we changed into swimwear and spent almost an hour in the pool. Then another quick change into lightweight clothes and we were on the boat to Downtown Disney.

Most likely this morning will be our only DTD visit as there really isn't much draw for us. After the moment of silence as the boat pulled into the dock behind Adventurer's Club, we walked and shopped a bit before heading to Wolfgang Puck's Cafe for lunch. Really enjoyed the meal and it was again nice to be at a relaxed pace, as early reservation meant a relatively empty restaurant. Since Wolfgang's minions always provide way too much food we are happy to have enough leftovers to cover another meal later in the week.

Here are the girls at DTD this morning:


After lunch, we saw the storm clouds approaching and got the boat back to Old Key West. Checked on the room (still not ready), did some shopping, then went to the Community Hall for some games while we waited. That was when the storm hit, so the usually near empty room became packed. DD enjoyed some Wii Just Dance with 3 Cast members and then we headed back to the lobby to watch vintage cartoons until the room was ready at about 3:30pm.

Now, we are preparing for the Backyard BBQ. And, just happy to be here. (and hoping the boats are running again when we get to the docks - bus to Fort Wilderness is a pain!).

Middle of Day 2

Last night was the Backyard BBQ. We always love this event dining. Characters, dancing, good musicians, alcohol included....what's not to like? As always, lots of fun for all. Not sure about anyone else, but I think the guy who plays Tumbleweed Will (we've always had the same one) is one of the best performers on site.


This morning was an early morning at Epcot. Nothing went as planned (see the beginning of the report for the plans), but everything went great! At 8am we headed to do the characters first (no rope drop, which seemed odd - just open turnstiles at 8am). Then realized, then didn't open until 9am, so over to Soarin' where we got on the very first flight of the day. Then cross to the other side of Future World for Test Track followed by Sum of All Thrills (DD and I on the 'light' side since she is under 54", DW did a full craziness coaster on her own). Then to the princesses for breakfast at Akershus.

We finished breakfast at 10:30, so rather than wait 30 minutes for Maelstrom to open up, we went back to Communicore West (oops, Innoventions) to do the Great Piggy Bank Adventure, which is a DD favorite.

Then a quick visit to Imagination - it was quite strange to have a 5 minute wait for the ride. Even though we always travel at peak times, I don't think we've never had to wait for that one. Then over to The Land for our Behind the Seeds tour.

We all loved that one (even without the ladybug release - which we assume didn't happen due to the extreme crowds, according to the guide every tour today was fully booked). After the tour, back to the room for a good 2 hour nap and now we are headed to Chef Mickey's!

Day 3 'early' Morning

Well, it is 9:30am on Monday, Day 3. The girls are both still sleeping off the effects of staying in Magic Kingdom until 3am. BUT, boy was it worth it.

Let's start where I left you last with dinner and Chef Mickey's. First a little disclosure - we have been to The World on both DD and DWs actual birthdays in the past few years. Since my birthday is at the end of April and is always during 'concert week' (I teach high school music) there is almost no chance of making it here for my day, so DD and DW decided that yesterday would be my day - since I am a Fool and all. That, of course, meant a cupcake at both breakfast and dessert and some fun with characters as well.


After dinner, there was a little squall coming through, so we decided to take the full monorail hotel loop around the lagoon and arrived at MK just as the rain subsided and it was a minute or so before 7pm. Upon entry, we heard the Move It, Shake It parade just starting up, so we grabbed some curb and watched them go by. Due to the weather, they simply did the main street/hub loop, but we managed to slip away while the floats were circling the hub and head into Adventureland. And, that is where the fun began...

Perhaps you have been reading along all the way and know about our planning philosophy? Plan once - good. Plan twice - better. Plan everything 20-30x and no matter what happens you are ready for it. Well, if you read this night's plan, you know it was pretty vague (7pm-1am or later - hit Adventureland, Frontierland, and Liberty Square) and, just as expected the night was nothing like that!

7:15pm - we head to Adventureland and get FPs for Jungle Cruise, which are for 7:45pm (score!). So, we visit the Tiki Room "Recently Returned to Old Management" and greatly enjoy the show - and also the pre-show. Nice to see a classic back to it's entertaining best (too bad the family behind us was singing along at full volume to everything - louder than the birds!).

Right at 7:45pm when we exited, so over to Jungle Cruise which was quite entertaining as always. Then we walked back to Splash Mtn to get some FPs for late in the night (thank you, Mobile Magic app for letting us know we could still get them). Grabbed 3 for 10:45pm, then back to Adventureland for Pirate of the Caribbean. Nice to see the Capt. Blackbeard mist working last night and happy to have only about a 7 minute wait. In fact, quite shocked by the short wait since the park was pretty crowded. The rain had emptied out some of the masses, but it was still a healthy mass of motion. From there, we decided to take the train to Storybook Circus to check out the new (well, re-themed at least) stuff. As we were still focused on a late night, we decided a full round trip plus was a good idea, so we rode for a good while.

Upon exiting the train, we enjoyed some of the new decor of the Storybook Circus. There is a proud family tradition of sign and statue mockery, so here's DD enjoying a poster on the construction wall.


From there, we headed to Pinocchio's for a snack and to sit for behind-the-castle view of Wishes at 10pm. Not sure why, but we really enjoy this view. DD is consistently yelling WHOAH every time she turns from big fireworks to the back to the over castle ones in the front. Lots of fun.

After the fireworks, we met up with some friends and chatted for a short while, then headed back to Splash to use our FPs (so, yup, it's 11pm). Sadly, Splash was down and not sure when it might return, so we bailed on that and decided to watch the Electrical Parade from a very open area in Frontierland - nice to have open ground to ourselves! Then we headed toward Tomorrowland via Adventureland. Naturally, that meant a Dole Whip and much to our surprise a visit with the Fairies. DW happened to look up at the sign as we ate and saw there was almost no line, so we got in to see them literally as they closed the doors.


Time for a new post as we are hitting EMH and that's where the fun really begins!

Those Day 2 Night EMHs

So, midnight at MK. Since we were pretty much all about the attractions, here is the rundown. Comments and a couple pics to follow.

TTA Peoplemover
Tea Cups
Great Goofini - all three of us in two planes
Great Goofini - DD only, first totally solo roller coaster
Dumbo - all three in two elephants
Dumbo - DD only, been done before, but still a big thrill for an 8yr old
Winnie The Pooh
Snow White's Scary Adventure
It's a Small World
Buzz Lightyear - DD and DW together, me on my own
Buzz Lightyear - DD and me together, DW on her own
Space Mountain
Tomorrowland Speedway
Buzz Lightyear - DW and I together, DD on her own

That's a quality three hours. Interspersed in there, we made regular visits to the same Photopass photographer in the hub for a midnight shot, 1:30am shot, and 2:30am shot. Looking forward to seeing how those turn out. We also visited a number of other Photopass spots along the way.

Having never done night EMHs to any great extent, didn't realize how empty things would get. From that list above, the total COMBINED wait time was 20 minutes. And the majority of that was just waiting for the rides to cycle through. The only actual line was about 10 minutes for Space Mountain.

On Buzz, somehow DW hit something magical in the first room and scored the highest possible score 999,999. Also, DD hit something valuable as she averages 8000 or so and got 200,000 on her solo trip.

Seeing both Dumbo and Goofini running with no line and empty cars was amazing. Here's DD on Goofini (yes, that's her alone in the front car).


And, we have now learned that DD is nowhere near ready for a driver's license. She made one turn so hard that the glowstick bracelet she was wearing flew off and out of the car.


So, today we are resting in. Decided not to head to Mara for breakfast/lunch and to instead just relax in the room and head to Animal Kingdom around 1pm and do all the shows if we can!