Trip Report *Completed* We Got No Troubles, Life Is The Bubbles, Down at Disney

Hi Everyone! Welcome to my first ever trip report. I discovered this site about a year ago and have been reading trip reports ever since. I hope you enjoy following along with mine.

The Cast:

DH Paul and me, Lisa


DS Adam and DSGF Kara
They graduated from high school in May and will be attending the University of Kentucky this fall.
"What Team?"
"Wildcats!"
Sorry, couldn't resist the High School Musical reference!

DD Allie and DDF (DD friend) Sarah
Allie takes awesome photos and I plan to use lots of her pictures in my report.

When? July 13-21, 2014
Where? Disney's Wilderness Lodge
Why? Our 25th Anniversary and Family Vacation

Day 1
July 13, 2014
We usually take 2 days to drive to WDW. Since we had extra people with us on this trip and would need 2 hotel rooms, we decided to save the hotel money and do the drive in one day.
We planned to leave our home in Cincinnati at midnight, but Paul and I had last minute packing to finish and Kara and Sarah both forgot things that had to be picked up from their homes.




Allie decorated the van for the trip!



We took a quick selfie and we finally hit the road about 1 am. Sorry for the crappy photo quality, but I had to include it!

I thought it would be fun to pass out little treats themed to each state we would drive through on the way to Florida. One thing came to mind when I thought about items produced in Kentucky, unfortunately I didn't think bourbon was appropriate for all members of our group.



Luckily I found an alternative at the UK campus bookstore!



The next state was Tennessee. Moon Pies are made in Chattanooga!

Next up was Georgia. I debated between peaches and peanuts and finally decided on


Peanut M&Ms!!


PALM TREES!!! We finally made it to Florida! We stopped at the Florida Welcome Center for free orange juice.

The next several hours dragged by. Disney should invent some form of magical transportation that whisks you to WDW as soon as you cross the Florida state line!

Finally, we saw this beautiful sight!


We couldn't believe we were finally here!

Minutes later the excitement reached a new level as we saw this…..



One last turn and we had reached our home for the week…..

Disney's Wilderness Lodge

Up next, exploring the Wilderness Lodge!

 

[Mom@disney]

Thanks so much for reading. Glad you are enjoying it. You will love the Wilderness Lodge! As far as transportation we have always had a car when we've stayed at WL. So we usually drive to Epcot, HS and AK. It's an easy drive to all of them. We usually take the boat to MK. We have also taken the boat to MK and then taken the monorail to Epcot from there. I don't have any experience with the buses at WL, but I talked to several other families while we were there and they had been happy with the bus transportation. As far as room selection we usually request a woods view. The first time we stayed at WL we were on the first floor and had a patio that looked out at some trees and the WL villas. The kids loved sitting out on the patio, especially because there were lots of Disney bunnies hopping around. It was very peaceful. The last two trips the woods view overlooked a small pond with trees. We could see, but not hear Wishes while we were on the balcony. We were on the 4th floor. I think there are 6 regular (not club level) floors, if you really want to be able to see Wishes with a less obstructed view I would request a woods view room facing Magic Kingdom on the 6th floor. We were in 4026 and 4028 so 6026 and 6028 would probably have a pretty good view. We could also see the Contemporary. It was cool to watch the monorail going in and out of the Contemporary. We enjoy eating at the quick service Roaring Fork. We feel like there is a good variety and it is super convenient. It does get crowded. We've also eaten at Whispering Canyon Cafe. It is a hoot! They have stick horse races and it is loud and boisterous! Pool is great. There is a slide. Lots of games and activities for the kids at the pool in the afternoon. They show movies on the beach every night. They also have a campfire where they roast S'mores. You can watch the Electrical Water Pageant from the beach. Hope that helps!

Thanks for all the great advice!!! We won't have a car, but we are really looking foward to taking the boat to MK. Our room is booked for a woodsview and I think I'll go with what you said...maybe we will have some luck and get it! We have never seen the EWP and it must be so cool to watch it from the beach. My girls always look foward to roasting marshmallows, so they will be happy to do so in Disney! Can't wait to hear more of your trip! You have such a cute family and thanks for sharing your memories with us.

 

[prfctlyximprct]

All caught up!! Love that you girls braved the rain and had an amazing night!! The pictures are priceless and you can feel the happiness through them!! Your food pictures are making my stomach grumble.. French onion soup.. Mmm! And I must try koan for breakfast! I don't think id be able to eat the rest of the day with the size of those portions, but it seems like a challenge id love to try lol! Thanks for sharing!! I'm so excited!!

 

[FlaggNL]

Thanks for reading. Your trip is getting closer. We'll be reading your TR soon! Just started reading about your trip to DLP to ride the new Ratatouille ride. Looks so fun!

Yeah it's getting closer and closer! Hope you read our TR not too soon In that case we already returned home and for sure I dont want that to happen right now LOL!

Thanks for reading the DLP TR! Much more to come today in the TR! And it isn't only looking fun, it was fun! As always

 

[TheMouseFan]

Your pic of the Tonga Toast is making me drool!! I had the chance to try it for the first time on our November trip. It was incredible! I only wish we had time to get some in October! Oh well, next time! Can't wait to read more!

 

[DisSplash]

Ummm ... Tonga Toast! A reason to go back!

You are really killing it with this trip report! Love the photos and all of your commentary. And I can only imagine how awesome it was to share all that magic with some newbies!

 

[SharonD]

Oh boy - the Tonga Toast and pancakes look delicious! I keep trying to resist, but this is one battle I may not win.

 

[LisaBelle]

Thanks for all the great advice!!! We won't have a car, but we are really looking foward to taking the boat to MK. Our room is booked for a woodsview and I think I'll go with what you said...maybe we will have some luck and get it! We have never seen the EWP and it must be so cool to watch it from the beach. My girls always look foward to roasting marshmallows, so they will be happy to do so in Disney! Can't wait to hear more of your trip! You have such a cute family and thanks for sharing your memories with us.

Taking the boat to MK is one of the main reasons we love staying at the Wilderness Lodge. Good luck with getting the room you request. Hope it works out. The EWP is fun. They have chairs down on the beach and you can sit back, relax and enjoy. They pause the movie during the EWP, so you can watch the EWP without missing the movie. So glad you are enjoying reading about our trip. I am really having fun writing about it. Hope you have a magical trip!

All caught up!! Love that you girls braved the rain and had an amazing night!! The pictures are priceless and you can feel the happiness through them!! Your food pictures are making my stomach grumble.. French onion soup.. Mmm! And I must try koan for breakfast! I don't think id be able to eat the rest of the day with the size of those portions, but it seems like a challenge id love to try lol! Thanks for sharing!! I'm so excited!!

Thanks for continuing to follow along. Your trip is so close! I am super excited for you! The Kona breakfast challenge is definitely worth trying. The portions are huge, but as you will see in my next post I managed to eat my fair share of food at World Showcase later that day! I'm so glad that our excitement is coming through in the pictures. It really was a magical trip.

Yeah it's getting closer and closer! Hope you read our TR not too soon In that case we already returned home and for sure I dont want that to happen right now LOL!

Thanks for reading the DLP TR! Much more to come today in the TR! And it isn't only looking fun, it was fun! As always

I will definitely follow the rest of your TR. Glad you had such a great time.

Your pic of the Tonga Toast is making me drool!! I had the chance to try it for the first time on our November trip. It was incredible! I only wish we had time to get some in October! Oh well, next time! Can't wait to read more!

Who knew toast could be so delicious?! Tonga Toast is definitely one of new my favorite Disney foods. The trouble is my list of favorite foods keeps growing and it makes it impossible to get them all in in one trip! Thanks for following. Lots more fun to come!

Ummm ... Tonga Toast! A reason to go back!

You are really killing it with this trip report! Love the photos and all of your commentary. And I can only imagine how awesome it was to share all that magic with some newbies!

Thanks so much! Writing this TR is helping to keep the Disney blues away. It was great to share the magic with the newbies. They both loved it. In fact, Kara told Adam she's already ready to go back to Disney!

Oh boy - the Tonga Toast and pancakes look delicious! I keep trying to resist, but this is one battle I may not win.

Don't fight it. Just give in and enjoy. You'll be glad you did! All I can say is YUM!!

 

[LisaBelle]

Paul and I left the Poly and headed back to wake up the slumbering teens. Adam was not happy that it was raining again. Everyone got ready and grabbed a quick snack before heading out to Epcot. It was sprinkling and we were all in our ponchos so we saved the photo pass picture for later in the day. We were planning to spend most of our afternoon in World Showcase, but didn't want to miss Spaceship Earth, so we jumped in line.

Not thrilled to be wearing my poncho in this line.

After our journey on Spaceship Earth Allie and Sarah decided to help power a city.

Had to get a shot of Adam and Kara in their matching UK ponchos. I bought them during their UK orientation and surprised them with them when we got to Disney. Adam liked the idea of the poncho, but did not enjoy actually having to wear it, LOL!
Our next stop was Mouse Gears. We love this store! Kara found gifts for several family members. We had them sent to WL so we wouldn't have to carry them around all day.

It stopped raining so we took our group photo. It turned out that our photographer had lived in the Cincinnati area. He told us he really missed eating Skyline Chili, which is a local favorite.

The last time we were at Disney I took a photo just like this in this same spot. We decided to try to re-create it.
Now for our trip around World Showcase.
Mexico



Adam and Kara really liked the colorful carved wooden animals. Kara bought a turtle for her sister. Adam got a giraffe.

Time for some food. We were trying to pace ourselves so Adam and Paul shared the chicken tacos.

The rest of us shared some nachos.
Norway was next.





The last time we came to Disney Adam discovered a Norwegian club sandwich that he loved. It was the number one food he wanted to eat on this trip. He let other people try it and they liked it so much that they all got one when we came back later in the week.


Paul got some type of waffle with some sort of Norwegian form of peanut butter. It was just okay. Wouldn't order it again.

We took pictures in China, but didn't stop for food.



Coming up: More World Showcase

 

[prfctlyximprct]

Why do I read these things at night?! OMG FOOD. Want all of that right now!!! I will never learn!!

 

[FlaggNL]

I will definitely follow the rest of your TR. Glad you had such a great time.

Thanks, it is finished now! And off course it was a great time, as always Can't imagine a trip to a Disney park would not be good

 

[mrdrift]

I would say that the girls did have fun at MK. I have never stayed to see the closing of the park but it's now on my list of things to do.Tonga toast is also now on the list. Reading along with your report is adding so many things to the "to-do-list", all I can say is thanks for sharing the highlights of your trip.

 

[LisaBelle]

Why do I read these things at night?! OMG FOOD. Want all of that right now!!! I will never learn!!

I do the same thing! You'll be there soon and you can eat all the foods you've been drooling over!

Thanks, it is finished now! And off course it was a great time, as always Can't imagine a trip to a Disney park would not be good

I totally agree. I think all Disney trips are great!

I would say that the girls did have fun at MK. I have never stayed to see the closing of the park but it's now on my list of things to do.Tonga toast is also now on the list. Reading along with your report is adding so many things to the "to-do-list", all I can say is thanks for sharing the highlights of your trip.

Glad you are enjoying the report. I added lots of must do items to my trip after reading other trip reports. In fact, I first learned about Tonga Toast and spiked Dole Whips from trip reports.

 

[stevehousse]

Ur pictures r not there something about bandwith

 

[FlaggNL]

I totally agree. I think all Disney trips are great!

Yeah! Although sometimes you here/read some complaints here... but maybe it depends on what you expect....

 

[LisaBelle]

Ur pictures r not there something about bandwith

Sorry about that. Back up and running now. More to come later.

Yeah! Although sometimes you here/read some complaints here... but maybe it depends on what you expect....

I think the right attitude makes all the difference. I always go with the attitude that even if there are some bumps along the way we will still have a good time and we always do. It must be the faith, trust and pixie dust in action!

 

[LisaBelle]

Hmmm. I can't see my pictures again. I thought I got it fixed this morning. Can't fix it from my phone so I will check on it from my computer at home later. Sorry! Hopefully it won't be too long.

 

[Mom@disney]

I like your recreation photo. I end up taking so many photos with my family walking up ahead of me...they just can't wait for all the fun, they don't have time for pictures lol.

 

[LisaBelle]

I like your recreation photo. I end up taking so many photos with my family walking up ahead of me...they just can't wait for all the fun, they don't have time for pictures lol.

Thanks! I am usually charging ahead trying to keep everyone else on schedule, so it was fun to take a shot from behind the group!

 

[LisaBelle]

Hi Everyone. Sorry for the delay. I was having issues with Photobucket. It looks fine when I view the boards on my computer, but my pictures aren't showing up when I check in on my phone, so I'm not sure if it's all the way fixed or not . Also, I am a teacher and had to start going in to school to get my room ready. I am going to try to get lots of posts done this weekend because once school starts next week I will have to cut back on Trip Reporting .

On with the show! We were working our way around World Showcase.
Adam had fun playing with the instruments.

I didn't remember seeing the Bead Outpost on other trips. I thought it was really cool that they make beads out of old maps and times guides. I really liked a pair of earrings I saw here. I meant to go back and buy them but never got around to it.



We stopped for some yummy treats in Karamell- Kuche. Sorry no pictures but Kara and Allie had a caramel pecan candy. I had a cookie coated in caramel. Delish!


My dad was born in Germany, so we took some group shots here for him.



Paul has been watching lots of soccer. He and my dad watched several World Cup matches together. Paul bought this ball for my dad to celebrate Germany's World Cup win. We were bummed that they didn't have any World Cup Champions merchandise.

Hello beautiful Geosphere!


Got obsessed with light fixtures for a few minutes!




In France we stopped in at the remodeled bakery. I had the Croque Monsieur

and Paul had a cheesy toast of some sort.


I always take pictures of Adam and Allie in these phone booths. This time all 4 kids got in on the act. They were very creative with their facial expressions!








Paul and I came to Disney on our honeymoon. We had our picture taken in front of the Canadian waterfall. We decided to do a 25th anniversary version. I will look for the honeymoon photo and will post it if I can find it.



Then Kara and Adam wanted a turn!

 

[LisaBelle]

We left the Canadian gardens and headed for The Land. As we were passing the Refreshment Port I remembered that that is where they sell Cronuts! This was another food I had been dying to try. I made everyone stop and I bought 2 Cronuts for us to share. OMG!! It was awesome! Fried sugary goodness at it's best. If you get a chance, you NEED to try this. We all loved them. Allie and I are craving one right now.



After our delicious snack we continued our walk to The Land.

So happy to be at Disney!
While the Cronut was delicious, we needed "real" food so we headed for Sunshine Seasons. Adam loves the macaroni and cheese from there. Adam, Allie and Sarah all had the mac & cheese, but I don't have a photo of it.

Kara had a turkey sandwich with chipotle mayonnaise on ciabatta. She loved it.


I had an Asian chicken salad. It was okay. There was a spice in it that I don't care for. That was okay, because that meant I had more room left for this little beauty:


Ever since I read about this strawberry shortcake in @blackthidot's TR I have been wanting to try it. It was soooooooo good. We liked it so much we came back for more later in the week. Thanks @blackthidot for bringing this culinary delight to my attention !

I think this photo is a hoot! Adam was very involved in playing a game on his phone while he waited for the rest of us to finish eating. I was trying to sneak a picture of him and just as I snapped it, he looked up to see what was going on! We all had a good laugh when we looked at the picture!




We wanted to ride Living with the Land, but it closed at 7 and it was 7:15 . So we headed over to the Seas for a trip with Nemo and his Friends.



We walked right on. This ride has a great queue. I like the ride, but certainly wouldn't want to wait for more than 15 minutes for it.
We only had a short amount of time before our last fastpass+ of the day, so we took a quick look at some of the exhibits in the aquarium section. We planned to come back to see more later in the week, but never made it.
Allie loves to get her picture taken in Bruce's mouth. This year Sarah joined her.

Saw this survey marker on the walk from The Seas to The Land

Back in The Land we were ready for our flight over California on Soarin'

I think our fastpass+ time was for 8:00. My plan was to get there at the early part of our window, ride and then try to score a last minute spot to watch Illuminations. Unfortunately, several tour groups had the same return time we did . As I am writing this I remembered that we actually tried to go on Soarin before we rode Nemo, but since we ran into the tour groups we went to Nemo instead. Anyhoo, we came back to Soarin and were speeding through the queue. I was very happy thinking we might actually make it to see Illuminations. Then we came to a dead stop and waited and waited. We finally made it on the ride. Soarin is one of my favorite rides. I think it is really a unique experience. I do agree with other people who have said the film needs to be cleaned up, but I still loved the ride. Kara and Sarah did as well. We exited Soarin and could see that Illuminations had already started. So much for my plan. No worries, we were coming back on Saturday.
We strolled through Mouse Gears one more time as we headed for the exit.

We went back to Wilderness Lodge and watched Wishes from the balcony. Then we went to bed because tomorrow we would be having some Frozen Fun at Hollywood Studios!